DRAMA
YEAR 8 PLAY BRINGS A CLASSIC MUSICAL FANTASY TO LIFE
THE WIZARD OF OZ – ‘ A TRULY
The Wizard of Oz was an amazing production and experience for the cast and crew – a joint performance of Year 8 students from Scotch and MLC . We enjoyed every moment of it , from the character workshops all the way to the dress rehearsals , and finally our performances . We got to delve into a variety of different aspects of stage acting , while having fun with our friends .
Our first rehearsal , on a Sunday afternoon at the start of Term 1 , was an opportunity to meet the entire cast and study our characters in more detail . As we started to explore our characters ’ backstories , we slowly moved closer to the role we ’ d be about to play . Our theatre journey had begun !
After we had our characters perfected , we moved on to blocking . This is a process to decide staging and positioning . We worked on how to deliver lines facing the audience or how to portray a character ’ s feelings and express emotion without words . It was exciting and challenging to reveal the characters and bring them to life on stage .
As we worked through the play , scene by scene , we got closer to the final product . It was an incredible experience to watch the whole production come together to become the play the
audiences saw . The Scotch Drama facilities are exceptional and provided the cast and crew with many exciting features to use . The make-up rooms , props , backstage equipment , lighting , sound , and the stage itself made the whole production feel like a West End performance , and not a school play .
The staging , lighting and dress rehearsals were upon us in the last few weeks of term , bringing opening night that little bit closer . Our dress rehearsals were the first opportunity to get a real sense of our performance . We put on costumes and had our make-up and hair done , to really feel the part and bring our character to life on stage .
Getting ready for our performances was a long and sometimes nervous process , but it was helped by listening to some great music from Mr Waugh , helping us to relax , brush off any nerves and rev up for a great show .
Finally , it came – opening night . It is always the most nerveracking , as it is the first night you experience a live audience . Although we had done so much work perfecting our play , there was still a tiny part of us that said , ‘ what if something goes wrong , I forget that line , I miss my cue ?’ But we couldn ’ t let that stop us . After opening night everyone was excited with the thrill of its success .
46 Great Scot Issue 171 – Edition 1 2024