Torquay College goes Into the Woods

PUPILS at Torquay College have worked all year on their production of Into the Woods, which was performed to a small audience of their parents and friends earlier this week.

Members of the school’s drama club decided at the start of the year that they would like to try their hand at the award-winning Stephen Sondheim musical.

Over the course of the year, teachers Anika Helene and Lis Fawcett-Smith have worked to adapt the musical, shortening its length and adding in elements of several other well-known stories.

Speaking last week at one of the final rehearsals, Ms Helene said the production also included the Three Witches scene from Macbeth, as well as parts of Hansel and Gretel and Snow White.

She said the production’s cast and crew numbered more than 60, and was not just the grade 5 and 6 pupils in the drama club.

“We’ve incorporated the whole school – getting the set to look like this, getting both art teachers on board and each class contributing, so it’s not just about the drama club.

“We’ve got four school bands, so they play in the middle of a scene. They talk about going to a festival, so we thought ‘here’s a chance to incorporate our school bands; we’ll actually show the festival’.”

She said participants in the production had got a lot out of the experience even before they stepped on stage on Monday and Tuesday night.

“The kids have made the effort – they’re primary school kids, and they’re doing an awesome job.”