Drama10-14 years old

This summer, you can have the chance to devise and perform a play in only one week! The theme, the characters, the plot – they're all up to you!

Our Creative Drama Course will lead you through the devising process, developing your ideas into a polished piece of theatre. Collaborating with others in your group, you will have a chance to learn many new theatre skills and show your work in a performance at the end of the week.

By sharing ideas with others and exploring suggested themes and techniques through a range of games and scenarios, our play will be a real democratic, ensemble piece that will develop over the course of the week. Focusing on physical theatre and improvisation to explore our ideas, the resulting performance is bound to be imaginative, creative and dynamic.

Who is the course for?

The course is for anyone aged between 10 and 14 who likes to think creatively and work as part of a group. No previous acting experience is required, though the course is certainly suitable for those who are interested in advancing their own performance skills and knowledge of Shakespeare.

How many participants will there be?

We like to keep the course numbers small so that everyone in the group can have their moment to shine, and so that everyone feels integral to the final show. For that reason, the course has no more than 20 places.

Who is the course taught by?

The course is run by Joe Swarbrick, a qualified and experienced full-time Drama teacher here at d'Overbroeck's. He has also worked with youth theatres and directed for the Cambridge Arts Theatre, the Marlowe Society and Oxford Youth Theatre.

Course Content

Working in a small group alongside theatre professionals, you will feel like you are a core part of your production.

On the first day, you will vote to choose the Shakespeare play you would like to perform, from a choice of three. This text is used to inspire and not to restrict the performance, and a large portion of lines in the final show will have been devised by your group.

Once you have voted to choose the play you will be performing, work will begin. Using a variety of narrative, improvisation and physical theatre techniques, you will work your way through the play, devising your own unique interpretation. Props and set will be deliberately minimal, challenging you and your group to find creative ways of transporting your audience to faraway places through the use of sound, mime, music and physicality.

The final performance

At the end of the last day of the course, you'll be able to put the days of creativity and rehearsal into practice in a performance of your play – which your family and friends are invited to attend. This performance will take place at 5.30pm on Thursday 15 August, so put the date into your diary!