Drama

Drama is an exciting, creative and rewarding subject that allows pupils to develop new skills, grow their confidence and work with students across the two schools and from all year groups.

"My favourite thing about drama in Dame Allan's is all the amazing opportunities we're given and having the chance to work with a range of students from different years as well as some industry professionals. Doing drama at school has made me feel more confident in acting in front of bigger audiences and I've been inspired to carry on drama into sixth form.”

Ella, Year 12

In the Junior School we are very fortunate to have Drama on the timetable as a separate subject from Year 1 to Year 6.  These lessons provide a safe and supportive space for expression and imagination and encourage creativity, critical thinking and team work. There are many small scale performance opportunities on offer as well as one yearly major performance for each year group.

In the Senior School, all students study drama in Year 8, with most opting to continue the subject into Year 9, and a large number go on to take GCSE and A Level. 

All pupils, whether studying the subject academically or not, are encouraged to take part in co-curricular drama, with lunchtime and after school drama clubs running throughout the year. Here pupils work with the specialist drama staff in our state of-the-art drama studios where they explore improvisation, scriptwork, lighting and sound, costume and props, and regularly showcase their work to audiences of family and friends. Recent productions have included the musicals ‘The Addams Family’ and ‘High School Musical’, plays ‘Noughts & Crosses’ and ‘A Servant to Two Masters’, and smaller productions such as the Year 7 Extravaganza and Year 8 & 9 Panto.

All pupils are invited to take part in LAMDA lessons with our specialist LAMDA coach who meets with pupils in small groups on a weekly basis. These pupils go on to take graded examinations where they excel with a number achieving the prestigious gold medal, a prerequisite for drama schools.

Live theatre experiences and visits are an important part of school life and the schools organise a number of trips, practitioner workshops and guest speakers as well as subscribing to a variety of online platforms to ensure pupils have access to a wide range of theatre.

"I love the variety of plays. We’ve done gritty and serious as well as singing and comedy. It's an all around good laugh, especially on rehearsal days."

Tom, Year 13

After completing their studies, a number of pupils have gone on to secure places at prestigious drama schools while others have used the skills developed in drama to secure degrees in a wide array of subjects.