Drama & Performing Arts

"Be DARING, be DIFFERENT, be IMPRACTICAL, be anything that will assert integrity of PURPOSE and IMAGINATIVE VISION against the PLAY-IT-SAFERS, the creatures of the commonplace, the SLAVES of the ORDINARY."
Cecil Beaton

INTRODUCTION

At Queen's College we are interested in educating the whole person. As well as developing vital skills in communication, the performing arts deal with what it is to be human. When we can empathise with our fellow humans we become more complete as people. All our courses endeavor to prepare our students for life in the real world as thoughtful, tolerant, articulate, creative and well rounded adults.
Steve Eaton Evans
Head of Performing Arts Queen's College

The Staff

Steve Eaton Evans

Head of Performing Arts & Housemaster of Sibly

Steve qualified with a BA Hons in Theatre Language from Dartington College of Arts in 1983. He completed a PGCE at Leicester University in 1985 and has taught in both independent and state schools. He has been Head of Department in five different establishments. In 1995 he left education for 7 years to become a professional actor/playwright. He was Co-Artistic Director of Jakes Ladder Theatre Company with his wife Jane and toured the country directing and performing. Two of Steve's educational screenplays have been nominated for Royal Television Society Awards, one of which won (Backfire 2004). He also wrote Little Stars, a screenplay for schools tackling the thorny issue of abortion and attended the premier at The House of Lords. Steve published his play Einstein's Pants last year.

Jane R T Evans

Head of Dance & Head of Careers

Jane qualified with a B.A. Hons in Dance and English followed by a P.G.C.E. in Drama and English from Surrey University. As well as more recent experience teaching English at Richard Huish College she was formerly Head of Performing Arts at St Edward's School in Poole, Dorset. Jane also has seven years experience in professional theatre as Director of Jake's Ladder Theatre Company. She is still Artistic Director of theatreworks which she set up 2003. Jane has a number of years exam marking experience for O.C.R. Performance Studies. In 2010 she was appointed as Head of Careers at Queen's College.

Sue Wylie

Year 7&9 Drama/Resident Director

After graduating from The Drama Studio in London, Sue has worked extensively in Theatre around the country. One of her most challenging roles was in the one-woman show In Search of Stardom which came to Queen's in 2007. She has been part of the BBC Radio Rep. Company and has appeared in a variety of roles on TV. She has been teaching drama for 13 years and has just finished working at Thomas Hardye School in Dorchester. Sue played a number of leading roles for Jake's Ladder Theatre Company with Steve and Jane Evans.

David Hedges

Yr 12 & 13 Performance Studies/Head of Strings

David has been at Queen's since the early 1980's. He is an accomplished performer and composer. He has been Musical Director for countless productions in and outside school. He has been a free lance viola player for Welsh National Opera and English National Ballet among other companies. He has coached Somerset Youth Orchestra and is Principle Conductor of Somerset County Orchestra.

Richard Appleby

Performing Arts Technical Manager

After several years running a successful sound engineering business in the north of England and a brief spell working in public education, Richard joined Queen's College in August 2006 as the Performing Arts Technical Manager. He is also in charge of the Performing Arts Technical course.
Running a busy theatre and other performing arts spaces on the campus, calls on all his past experience from his wide previous employment as a computer engineering support manager and as a professional sound engineer.

The Facitilies

Students at Queen's benefit from superb facilities including a fully equipped 350 seat theatre (Queen's Hall), a Dance/Drama/Music Performance space with retractable seating (The PAC) a state-of-the-art Drama Studio with digital lighting and sound equipment and retractable seating for smaller audiences, a smaller rehearsal studio and a large costume resource centre.

Working with professional Practitioners

The Department prides itself in keeping excellent links with the industry and students benefit from being able to participate in workshops or shadowing schemes. Currently we have a Dancer-In-Residence (Amelia Ferdinado) who is working towards her BA in Dance.

Links with other Educational Establishments

Queen's Performing Arts Department works closely with other schools and colleges. For example pupils studying Drama may often tour local primary schoools with Theatre In Education projects such as ‘Horrible Histories'. Queen's also has excellent links with Somerset College's Film and TV make-up course whose students provide their expertise on our projects and productions. We also have excellent links with Chichester University's ‘3 Fall Dance Company. Queen's students are always encouraged to ‘shadow' the experts who come in to school.

THE CURRICULUM

"A group can MAKE or BREAK its members. It is MORE IMPORTANT than THE INDIVIDUALS within it. A GREAT GROUP can PROPEL its members forward to that they ACHIEVE AMAZING THINGS"
Keith Johnstone

Years 7 & 9 Drama

Each class has 1 lesson of Drama a week.
A basic grounding in drama skills covers improvisation, role-play, building a character, voice workshops and mime with an emphasis on communication through the medium of drama.

Yr 8 Drama

In Year 8 a ‘carousel' operates. Each set gets a double period of drama through one term of the academic year.
A basic grounding in drama skills covers improvisation, role-play, building a character, voice workshops and mime with an emphasis on communication through the medium of drama.

OPTIONS at KS4 GCSE DRAMA (Years 10 & 11)

Click here for GCSE DRAMA GALLERY

Lessons: 4 per week.

The pupils taking the subject at GCSE follow the AQA Syllabus. Students must take any two of the following two component modules: Scripted Acting, Improvisation, Stage Management, Costume Design, Set Design, Lighting Design, Sound Design, or Make-up. The Syllabus conforms to the National General Criteria. "Drama....is a practical artistic subject." This course reflects the practical nature of Drama although this is underpinned by theoretical knowledge of the techniques the students have employed.

YEAR 12 & 13 Performance studies 'A'/AS LEVEL

Lessons: 8 per week.

The AS and A2 OCR course takes a ‘Physical Theatre' approach in which students investigate how modern theatre uses a fusion and collaboration between the disciplines of Dance, Drama and Music. A basic grounding in each discipline leads to a more rounded performer. Among the practitioners studied are John Godber, Brecht, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, DV8, Steve Reich, Rafaela Bonachela and Joan Littlewood.

DANCE

A-Level OCR Dance will begin as a ‘twilight' session in Sept 2011 and other sixth form students who wish to turn their interest into a qualification can use their dance skills as part of an EPQ.

Technical Theatre

A popular ‘Crew Club' is well attended on Wednesdays. Students keen on the technical aspects of theatre are encouraged to get involved in programming lighting boards or creating recorded ‘soundscapes' from Year 7 on.

In the 6th form Queen's runs a special course for those students who are thinking about technical careers in theatre or TV.

"Creativity now is as important as literacy, and we should treat it with the same status."
Sir Ken Robinson

See Video of The Q.C. production of Macbeth directed by Steve Eaton Evans

Video of Q.C. Macbeth Banquo's Ghost