Drama & Performing Arts
Stafford Grammar School is bursting with opportunities for drama and performing arts.
We want our pupils’ talents to shine, and at the same time encourage as many pupils as possible to join in and have great fun.
Our pupils feel a great sense of joy from their participation in the performing arts – and there is always a lot of laughter coming from rehearsals!
Drama at Stafford Grammar School provides pupils with a wealth of opportunities to get involved both on and off the stage.
All pupils at Key Stage Three receive one lesson a week with a specialist Drama teacher, with pupils being given the chance to opt for GCSE Drama at Key Stage Four and A Level Drama at Key Stage Five. There are plenty of extra-curricular Drama opportunities including a whole school musical, several Drama Clubs across all year groups, and a Technical Theatre Club. We not only provide pupils with the chance to develop their performance skills but also a range of important transferable skills that will support them both in other subjects and with their future career and personal choices.
Carly Smith, Head of Drama
Our shows have included exceptional productions of:
– Annie
– Beauty and the Beast
– Les Miserables
– Westside Story
– Into the Woods
– Fame
– Sister Act
– Little Shop of Horrors
– 9-to-5
– The Addams Family
– Guys and Dolls
– Chicago
– Legally Blonde
As well as the actors on stage, our pupils get involved backstage, in set creation and on the sound and lighting desk, where they work one-to-one with industry professionals. With each of our productions, we have created pupil-led production teams involving:
– Directors
– Producers
– Stage managers
– Marketers
– Front of house staff
– Costume teams
The SGS Shakespeare Festival
SGS pupils presented three abridged versions of Shakespeare’s most famous plays, which included a special introduction to the Bard by pupils in Year 5.
- Years 7 and 8: Pupils performed a carnival-themed Comedy of Errors, a farcical tale of mistaken identities and absurd misunderstandings. Two sets of identical twins found themselves in a whirlwind of confusion and chaos in the city of Ephesus.
Years 9 and 10: These pupils tackled Macbeth, the tragic tale of a noble Scottish general whose ambition drove him to commit murder in a ruthless quest for power, ultimately leading to his own downfall.
Years 11–13: Finally, the senior pupils performed Hamlet. The play followed the Prince of Denmark’s tumultuous journey of revenge, existential questioning, and tragic consequences after his father’s untimely death and his mother’s hasty remarriage to his uncle, whom he suspected of foul play.
Theatre Trips
Live Theatre gives pupils the chance to see a range of professional and amateur work from across all genres and styles; from the trip to the pantomime for year 7 and 6th form pupils, a visit to see Blood Brothers for GCSE Drama pupils; opportunities to experience a range of styles for GCSE and A-Level Drama pupils; and a series of other trips throughout the year open to the rest of the pupil body… there’s something for everyone!
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Recent trips have included Metamorphosis by Frantic Assembly at the Belgrade in Coventry; Ocean at the End of the Lane at the Regent Theatre in Stoke on Trent; and Blood Brothers at the Hippodrome in Birmingham.
Extra-Curricular Drama
There is a wealth of extra-curricular opportunities available to pupils both on and off the stage. Throughout the year, pupils have the opportunity to take part in a range of productions, including one-act plays, large-scale musicals that bring together Drama, Dance and Music, and showcases of devised work. Technical Theatre Club provides pupils with the chance to develop skills in areas such as lighting, sound, set design, costume, and stage management.
Our productions encompass a wide variety of theatrical styles and genres, from Shakespeare and other classic texts to contemporary plays, devised theatre, and musical theatre. Pupils are encouraged to explore performance, directing, and production roles, with opportunities for leadership and collaboration across year groups.
We also offer a programme of theatre visits that enrich pupils’ understanding of live performance and expose them to a range of professional practitioners and productions. Recent trips have included performances by leading theatre companies, large-scale touring productions, and innovative contemporary theatre, helping to inspire and inform pupils’ own creative work.
LAMDA
LAMDA is a very popular extracurricular option at Stafford Grammar School. We have 5 LAMDA teachers and all through the school we have many pupils who take individual or paired lessons each week.
Dance
Our students can learn dance skills and express themselves during lessons in our brand new dance studio.
A tailored, supportive approach, enabling pupils to fully engage with the sessions and reach their full potential in examinations.
LAMDA classes provide training to help your child develop a range of performance and communication skills that will help them throughout their lives, such as self-confidence, expressive communication and a clear speaking voice. Our LAMDA teachers get to know your child on a personal level, and steer their training to enable them to thrive in the subject.Â
Pupils work towards examinations in either Acting, the speaking of Verse and Prose or Public Speaking. Lessons can be taken in a pair or as a solo class and take place in our beautiful, renovated LAMDA spaces. An external examiner visits the school to assess each grade. UCAS points are obtained from the highest grades.
Victoria Gotham, Teacher of LAMDA
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