Tanglin Trust School - Departments - Drama

News and Events

A Selection of Recent Productions

“14 Songs, 2 Weddings & a Funeral” – 19th, 21st and 22nd February

Our Senior School students from Years 8 to 13 performed 14 Songs, 2 Weddings and a Funeral directed and designed by the Head of our Drama Department Simon Veness on 19th, 21st and 22nd February in the Performing Arts Hall in the School’s new building.

The show was a colourful and fun Bollywood-style musical set in Singapore in 1973. The musical director was music teacher Richard Curran. Congratulations to the 57 students, including 15 band members, who were involved in this impressive production. Preparations for the show commenced in September 2007 and involved students engaging with the cultures that make up their host country. They also reflected on how much Singapore had developed over the past 25 years. Band members worked with music specialists to master the Bollywood beat and musical style.

Andreas Litras Community Show: 21st to 23rd January

Andreas Litras visited Years 3, 5 & 8 to perform “Myths & Monsters” in Week 3. He also performed “The Odyssey” to a small group of Key Stage 4 and 5 students of Latin and Classical Civilisation, as well as invited students from other schools and parents. Packed with participation and loads of laughter, Andreas used a magical blend of storytelling, mime, mask and puppetry. The show was well-received by all students, parents and teachers.

Lord of the Flies adapted by Nigel Williams – 26th to 28th November

Years 8 and 9 performed extracts from Nigel Williams’ adaptation of William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” in H3 Studio on Monday 26th, Tuesday 27th and Wednesday 28th November.

The central concern in Golding’s novel is the conflict between the two competing impulses that exist within human beings: the instinct to live by rules, act peacefully and follow moral strictures as opposed to the all consuming desire for immediate and savage gratification brought about through the violent subjugation of others. This conflict is explored through the dissolution of the children’s civilized and moral behaviour as they accustom themselves to a wild, brutal and barbaric life in the jungle on a remote tropical island.

For Golding, this loss of innocence is not something which is done to the children, but is rather the natural result of innate evil, and the bloody offering to “the beast’ of the impaled pig’s head is a powerful symbol of that innate human evil disrupting childhood innocence.

Loose Canon (October 2007)

Loose Canon Theatre Group visited Tanglin on 19th October and performed Years 1 & 2, and ran story-telling workshops for Yr 10 GCSE & devising workshop for Yr 13 A2.

Year 13: “Death and the Maiden” (October 2007)

The Drama department presented Ariel Dorfman’s Death & the Maiden on Thursday & Friday this week. Three Year 13 students, James Banus, Jessica Ripper and Will Hughes performed this dynamic play in Hall3 Studio which revolves around Paulina Escobar, a former political prisoner in an unnamed Latin American country who had been violated by her captors, led by a sadistic doctor whose face she never saw. The rapist played famous composer, Franz Schbert’s composition Death and the Maiden whilst she suffered under the ordeal; hence the play's title. This play explores intense questions about mankind’s ability and willingness to forgive as part of reconciliation.

Grimm Tales (June 2007)

The collection of fairy tales portrayed in the Key Stage 3 production of ‘Grimm Tales’ on 21st and 22nd June was most interesting. The cast did a terrific job of telling and acting the stories. It was also especially pleasing to see such a wide range of students participating. Congratulations to all those involved.

Skellig by David Almond ( May 2007)

The Year 7 students performed “Skellig” adapted from David Almond’s novel of the same title on 24th May and 25th May.The story was about a boy’s world being transformed from loneliness and uncertainly, after his extraordinary encounter with a strange creature at the garage of his new home.With his new friend Mina, Michael nourishes the creature, Skellig, back to health, while his baby sister languishes in the hospital. But Skellig is far more than he at first appears, and as he helps Michael breathe life into his tiny sister, Michael’s world changes forever.This production grappled with themes such as death and decay versus nature, new life and rejuvenation, nature and evolution, myth and dreams, growing up, family, friendships and loss. David Almond is two-time winner of the Whitbread Children’s Book Award. His first novel, Skellig, won the Whitbread Children’s Award and the Carnegie Medal.

TTS students studied the text during their Year 7 English curriculum.

Disco Inferno (January 2007)

More than 40 Senior School students, under the adept direction of the Head of our active Drama Department Simon Veness, staged a fabulous production of the hip modern musical Disco Inferno by Justin Sepple, at the Esplanade’s Theatre Studio from 11th to 13th January. The energetic show told the story of a young man who sold his soul for fame and fortune and the 24 scenes were skilfully linked by disco hits from the 70s.

The funky production featured a band of more than 10 very talented Senior School musicians, who were directed by Tanglin music teacher Richard Curran and supported by music teacher Alan Crawford. The fast-moving performance featured whole-cast choreography to hits including Crocodile Rock, Celebration and a medley of songs from the Village People. This ambitious musical was mounted by Tanglin in association with David Spicer Productions.

After-school rehearsals for the show commenced in October last year and choreography was by Tanglin Seniors Jenny Toole-Stott and Gita Kumar. Tanglin parents, many of whom were teenagers in the 70s, were seen singing along in the audience and all enjoyed the feature dance performance by PE teachers Mark Andrews and Dean Pearce. Disco Inferno as an impressive Senior School musical in 2007 followed the expert production of plays by William Shakespeare, Dario Fo, Arthur Miller and others in recent years.

KS3 Drama- Animal Farm – (November 2006)

Ian Wooldridge’s adaptation of George Orwell’s Animal Farm was put up by the Key Stage 3 Production on the 29th, 30th and 1st of December. This new dramatisation of Orwell’s novel brought about a raw energy from the students who explored the continuing relevance of the themes and issues within our modern world. A good performance put up.

Shut Up! By Andrew Payne (May 2006)
Performed by our Year 10 students as part of The Royal National Theatre’s Shell Connections Project 2006The Street of Crocodiles by Theatre de Complicite (April 2006)
Performed by our Year 13 students.

GCSE Performance Examination – Devised projects (April 2006)
Four devised plays – The Confidante, Beneath the Underdog, Butterfly and The Good Life

The Trial by Steven Berkoff (March 2006)

Students from Years 11, 12 & 13 performed Franz Kafka’s The Trial adapted for the stage by Steven Berkoff. The production was the culmination of a four month rehearsal process during which time the company developed the demanding physical theatre skills that define Berkoff’s performance style. A combination of outrageously stylised characters, a schizophrenic chorus with attitude, heightened movement, an evocative soundtrack and a dozen white frames combined to convey the nightmare world of Josef K. In our pre-show publicity we invited the audience to be prepared to ‘dream with their eyes open’. Here are some responses from two who were there:

“Thank you so much for a wonderful 'on the edge' performance of Berkoff's adaptation of Kafka's 'The Trial'.

You kept me captivated for two hours. So thought provoking was your presence on stage I had to avoid fellow members of the audience during the break. I did not need other people's platitudes, just my own thoughts to process the vibrancy of your production. With your strong commitment and understanding of your characters, I knew that you were also enjoying your performance. I believe that this is the true nature of theatre: both sides of the traditional 'footlights' leave the theatre on a high!”“

Congratulations on an absolutely excellent production. You were right in what you said in the assembly on Monday, you have an exceptionally talented group of people there. It was really thought provoking and atmospheric and those frames were very impressive. I don't know how they managed to sustain it for the whole two hours; I was exhausted just watching it.

”Once again I have been so impressed with the way our students respond to the challenges we present to them in the drama department. The company of twelve actors were on stage throughout the production and every attempt was made to fuse all the elements of production to communicate the central ideas of the play. This ambition demanded from each performer high levels of concentration and a heightened awareness of other performers as well as great control over individual skills. I am very proud of what all these students achieved.

During rehearsals we spent time working through the ideas of a challenging text and then collaborating to find the most exciting combinations of movement, voice, light, sound and space to communicate the play’s central message. My philosophy is that the relationship between actor, director and the text should always be a balanced one, especially in an educational context. Students are encouraged to engage with the creative process by making informed decisions and exploring a range of ideas rather than just doing what they are told. This combination of expectation, process and relationship allows individuals to achieve control and ownership over what they do, which leads to greater self-esteem and self-confidence.

This experience is available to anyone at Tanglin as drama department productions are genuine electives; students are never pressurised into taking part and we accept everyone who walks through the door on the first day of rehearsal. This is their commitment to a project, so we commit to them by making their journey as rewarding and as enriching as possible. The Trial has been no exception. Each student’s role was offered to them based on their contribution to a series of preliminary workshops (no one-off auditions) and the degree of challenge that was appropriate for them.

A word must be said about Mike Totton, our Head Boy, whose performance as the Bailiff and Titorelli in The Trial was his last at Tanglin. He is a veteran of TTS productions over the past four years including Living with Lady Macbeth (Melbourne Tour), West Side Story, The Royal Hunt of the Sun, The Crucible and Accidental Death of an Anarchist as well as GCSE & GCE examination work, a devised Theatre in Education performance for Year Six and theatre festivals in Australia, Hong Kong and China. I would like to thank him for his commitment and creative contribution to the department.

Top Girls by Caryl Churchill (March 2006)

Performed by Year 12 Theatre Studies students

Rabbit by David Foxton (December 2005)

Performed by our Key Stage 3 students, this is a dark play set in the future, in a world without adults and social structure, where vulnerable children are left to fend for themselves.

Totally Over You by Mark Ravenhill (November 2005)

Our Key Stage 3 Drama students performed Totally Over You by Mark Ravenhill. This play was inspired by Molière’s Les Précieuses Ridicules, and it is an ironic piece that examines the world of instant celebrity, branding and illusion.

Both these performances were very well attended by parents and friends and feedback from both shows have been extremely very positive.

Marco Luly Residency Commedia dell’Arte (November 2005)

A traditional Italian comedy troupe visited our School to hold workshops for our Year 8 Drama and Art & Design students on the improvised comedy popular in 16th century Italy. Their developmental work on the masked characters and popular scenarios proved extremely worthwhile.

Accidental Death of an Anarchist by Dario Fo (October 2005)

Tanglin’s Sixth Form students of Theatre Studies performed Accidental Death of an Anarchist.

Accidental Death of an Anarchist is a striking satire on police corruption in Italy. Written by Italy’s master comic Dario Fo (Nobel prize winner for Literature in 2000), the play retells the controversial case of anarchist railway worker Guiseppe Pinelli who, in December 1969, ‘fell’ to a suspicious death from the Police Headquarters in Milan.

The audience of Tanglin parents, students and friends were impressed by the Senior School’s production of this satire.