36 SCHOOL NEWS Drama Postponed from the final week of the Summer Term, following the School’s early closure, Fame, the latest in Shrewsbury School’s long tradition of musicals, and the first to be staged in the new Barnes theatre, was finally performed in the second week of the Michaelmas Term. Director of Drama Helen Brown pays tribute to the cast, musicians and crew. It is nearly 40 years since Fame first hit the screens, but its iconic story of aspiring performers donning their legwarmers to dance on yellow taxi cabs remains a pop culture phenomenon. This modern-day fable of art transcending adversity could not be more relevant today – after the past 18 months, the power of performance to bring joy and togetherness has never been more important. This production was postponed from the end of the Summer term, and it is testament to the extraordinary talent and commitment of the cast and crew that they were able to bring it to the stage in September with the bare minimum of rehearsal – indeed, in the case of Kate Woodman, with no rehearsal at all! (Kate arrived in the theatre ten minutes before curtain-up, having lost her luggage at the airport.) Particular thanks are due to the leavers – Phoebe Stratton-Morris, Arthur Myrddin-Evans, Clara Nagle and Amber Mak – who returned to school after their A levels in order to bid a final farewell to the Ashton stage. <strong>The</strong> show follows the students of New York’s star factory, the Academy of Performing Arts, as they battle both their personal demons and the challenges of an unforgiving industry. Amber Mak gave an impressive turn as Tyler, a talented dancer struggling with dyslexia and resentful of her more privileged classmates, particularly Iris (played with elegance and poise by Clara Nagle). Amber – who also acted as assistant choreographer to Head of Dance Sian Archer – demonstrated her extraordinary hip hop skills in a breathtakingly dynamic rendition of ‘Dancing on the Sidewalk’ that had the audience on its feet. Meanwhile, Nick Piazza, sensitively played by Ed Pickersgill, is desperate to be taken seriously as an actor, earnestly spouting Stanislavski and refusing to be distracted by adolescent hormones and the charms of his lovesick scene partner, Serena (Annabel Thompstone). Annabel gave a barnstorming performance in her stage debut, capturing Serena’s helpless longing with great warmth and vulnerability as she pleaded with Nick to ‘play a love scene of our own’. <strong>The</strong> undisputed queen bee of the academy, however, is Carmen Diaz, a fame-hungry wannabe diva with sharp elbows and a big voice. Abandoning her education and the puppyish devotion of her high-school sweetheart, Schlomo (Arthur Myrddin-Evans), she flees to LA, where she quickly discovers the sinister truth behind the promise that ‘In LA, your dreams can come true.’ She was played with extraordinary charisma by Kate Woodman, who made her both tragic and likeable as she traced her dark journey into drug addiction. <strong>The</strong> students are alternately inspired, nagged and cajoled by the staff, played by Phoebe Stratton-Morris, Georgina Cooper, Hamish Gray and Eleanor Keulemans. All are devoted to their students, but have different views as to how best to prepare them for the inevitable hard-knocks of a life on stage. This conflict was brilliantly articulated by Phoebe and Georgina in <strong>The</strong> Teacher’s Argument, a virtuoso close-harmony show-down. Phoebe went on to bring the house down with her heartfelt performance of <strong>The</strong>se are my children, perhaps proving that ‘in times of trouble, when the world seems oh, so dark,’ hope continues to come from music, dance – and the joy of a glitter cannon.
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