Mr Pickering and colleagues in the drama department have just returned from their third theatre trip to New York. Students were treated to the delights of Legally blonde – the Musical and an inventive musical reworking of Sesame Street. Walking tours and visits to the Empire State Building added to enjoyment and interest of the trip that proved yet another success.

Wednesday 25th Friday 27th March 7.00 p.m.

The show will go on!

Mr Pickering has collaborated with students on an original adaptation of The Beggar’s Opera. The story concerns the lives and loves of a group of criminals in London during the 1700s when crime was rife, morality lax, punishment hard, and the law as pliable as your purse. Our hero (or villain?) is a highwayman with a weakness for the ladies, and our villains (or heroes?) officers of the law with a love of money. The problems: those of marriage, property, wealth, fidelity and how to make the best of the situation.

Please come along and support what promises to be an original and distinctive production.

Tickets cost £4 for adults and £3 for children and senior citizens.

A copy of Mr Pickering’s letter is attached

Just five weeks after the triumphant performance of We Will Rock You, Whickham students will once again foreground their performance skills with a festive production of Cinderella, running from December 12th – 14th at 7.00p.m. in the Main Hall.

This production is particularly special as it has been produced and directed by the students themselves and promises to offer an entertaining combination of comedy, drama, dance and music. The students are performing an additional performance for local primary school children.

Please come along to what promises to be a lively and entertaining evening.

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Mr Pickering and colleagues from the drama department have just returned from a drama trip to London’s Theatre land, involving more that 40 students. Highlights of their trip included the musical version of The Lord of the Rings but they also saw the National Theatre’s highly acclaimed and innovative production of Michael Morpurgo’s War Horse.

October 30th – November 3rd

Rehearsals are well under way for this autumn’s school production, the highly successful West End musical, We Will Rock. The show is the result of a unique collaboration between Queen and Ben Elton, and takes some of their classic rock into a futuristic world where rock music is no more and a hero is sought to bring its return.

The show promises a highly energetic mixture of drama, music, and dance along with some audience participation. Get your tickets early for what promises to be another memorable school production.

Whickham drama students rarely take the easy route when staging their drama productions. From human topiary in Saltwell Park to edgy drama in the Tyne Bridge Towers, students have regularly sought inventive locations to perform their work.

This year was no exception as Mr Crosland explored new depths with a subterranean performance at the Denton Spiral, a series of underground chambers that support a motorway slip road! The production team had to hire their own generator to produce lighting for their play and complete rigorous safety checks for cast and audience.

Immense energy was expended prior to performance but even then the audience couldn’t sit still but instead follow the performers in their promenade performance of a ghostly play.

Cast and audience shared a claustrophobic and shadowy experience of another distinctive performance.

Sixteen year 10 students have recently returned from a highly successful visit to Gymnasium School in Breda, Holland where they took on the challenging but highly rewarding task of planning an international festival for year 7 pupils at the school.

The students were selected after a rigorous application and interview process. Once in Holland, they worked alongside 16 Dutch Young Leaders to plan, deliver and evaluate the festival. The students had to accommodate cultural and linguistic differences in some fascinating debates to decide the format of the festival and the key activities that they would run. Key skills of organisation, delegation communication were put to the test. Eventually, the Young Leaders decided to run a series of small workshops, including Drama, Dance, Art, Sport, music – and even a rap competition for over 200 year 7 pupils!

This highly successful exchange was funded by The Youth Sports Trust, The British Council and Sports College initiatives.

The educational links between Whickham and Gymnasium have been strengthened and both sets of students made many lasting friendships. We hope that an annual Dreams and teams event becomes an established fixture on the school calendar.

February saw the second of the Drama department’s theatre trips to New York. Mr Pickering, Mr Crosland and Ms Mc Donnell led a group of 20 students on an unforgettable tour of the Big Apple to see Broadway’s best.

Theatrical highlights included a trip to see Andrew Lloyd Webber’s spectacular Phantom of the Opera and the more challenging contemporary musical, Rent. Students were also able to participate in their own theatre workshops where they also talk to performers about the realities of stage life in the city.

A walking tour of the city provided a more down to earth insight into an urban landscape that so many of the students had only previously experienced on television or cinema screens. Memorable moments included ice skating in Central Park to night views of the city skyline from the top of the Empire State Building, alongside retail therapy in the likes of Bloomingdales, Macy’s and the famous toy shop, FA Schwartz.

Mr Pickering said: “ It was a fantastic, unforgettable and exhausting experience! The students had the opportunity to experience all that Broadway and this wonderful city had to offer.�