Drama

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students in white greecian robes dancing
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Chorus Cast of Anything Goes posing as sailors
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Tin Man, Scarecrow, Dorothy and the Lion in Wizard of Oz dancing
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2 students in a boat under the moon in Our Country's Good
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The Good Witch and Dorothy in Wizard of Oz LEH production

Whether it’s touring Roald Dahl musicals to local primary schools, staging a West End musical with the boys from Hampton School, or running a show backstage with a team of techies, we encourage our pupils to take part, test themselves, and enjoy everything the department has to offer.

In recent years we have staged musicals including the Wizard of Oz! and Anything Goes; we’ve commissioned new work from a contemporary performance poet; we’ve dunked Benedick of Much Ado fame into a fully working fountain and we’ve even fired a confetti cannon or two. Meanwhile, in the drama studio, our GCSE and A level candidates consistently excel: their practical work has been picked out for special praise by the Chief Examiner for three years in a row.

We keep ourselves fresh by regularly hosting workshops and training from leading theatre practitioners, and recently, 80 students went on a Performing Arts tour to New York City.

All of this work takes place in and around our stunning 330 seat theatre: it is a flexible space at the heart of the Arts Centre, which includes a rehearsal suite, studio theatre, green room and seminar room, as well as the Music and Art Departments.

Find out more about the School Play Experience at LEH

Wizard of Oz - Scarecrow performing on stage
Anything Goes - Hampton boy and LEH girl dancing
Hampton boy and LEH girl on stage talking
Oliver! - LEH student playing oliver stood up singing
LEH student performing on stage
LEH student performing on stage
Hampton and LEH student performing duet in Anything Goes musical
Anything Goes - student performing song in red sequin dress
LEH student performing on stage in Welcome to Thebes
LEH student performing in play on stage
Oliver! - LEH student performing on stage

Drama here is ouststanding.

the Good Schools Guide

Extra-curricular Drama

The extra-curricular programme is designed to combine open access to all activities with the pursuit of excellence, however that may be defined for the age-group and students involved. Regular clubs include:

  • Tech Club: two afternoons per week, students are trained to crew the full range of Performing Arts events, from Front of House through to wardrobe, lighting, sound and stage management.
  • Fun drama clubs for Years, 7, 8 and 9.
  • A Year 10 project exploring a diverse range of age-appropriate genres.
  • Musical Theatre Dance Club, which also includes boys from Hampton School, our neighbouring school.

Although many other events can be scheduled, the core production programme consists of:

  • An annual musical production performed with Hampton School, which the schools produce and host on alternate years;
  • A main school production;
  • A Year 10 production, which in the recent past has been an especially commissioned work from an emerging performance poet. Sometimes, but not always, with Hampton School.
  • A Sixth Form production (produced and directed by students, and open to the boys at Hampton School).
  • A Year 9 “Theatre in Education” tour to local Primary Schools.
  • A Lower School Musical (Years 7 & 8): a large scale production with 50-70 students in the cast.

Speech and Drama lessons

Approximately 160 students follow the Trinity Guildhall specification, drawing on the full range of options available as individuals, in pairs or in small groups.  These sessions are hugely popular, with many students opting to follow the Communication Skills syllabi to develop essential life-skills for the world of work, and beyond.  Over the course of the last year over 80% of all results have been a Distinction, and an increasing number of students are taking the professional Diploma examinations: we routinely place students into world-class conservatoires to continue their training.