The LEH Foshan Drama Department is very excited to announce that the school's first ever drama production will be "The Wizard of OZ”, Youth Edition. “The Wizard of OZ” is a fun, colourful play, with lots of music, songs, some dancing, and lots of wonderfully interesting characters. The performance, at the end of term two in March, will be one of the key highlights of the school year.
Being part of a school production is one of the most rewarding experiences that students can gain beyond lessons in school. “The Wizard of OZ”, such a memorable time for our students who choose to become involved will be from the senses of comradery and achievement that results from such an epic collaboration.
In this article, we invite Mr Stuart Savill, Head of Drama and Creative Arts Faculty, to give us an in-depth introduction to "The Wizard of Oz".
Mr Stuart Savill is the Head of Drama & Creative Arts Faculty, and Exams Officer with over 20 years of teaching experience. He has also held positions including Student Council Coordinator, and worked as a Senior Examiner and Senior Moderator for GCSE Drama.
Could you please Introduce yourself？
I am Mr Stuart Savill and I have been a Drama teacher for over 20 years. Before I became a Drama teacher I worked in a number of roles within the entertainment and theatre industry in the UK, including as an Actor mostly performing in short films and seasonal theatre performances, as an Entertainer where I performed magic, clowning, singing, dancing and even fire-eating, and also in backstage and front of house roles at both West End and regional theatres.
What musical productions have you conducted in the past?
I have produced and directed many student productions as a teacher. Most recently these have included, Mary Poppins, Joseph and His Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Grease, and Sweet Charity.
Why did you choose "The Wizard of Oz" as LEHF's first musical production as our first school play?
Both Mr Hobourn and I liked the idea of choosing "The Wizard of Oz" as it has lots of parts that are suitable for both boys and girls to play. It’s also a very famous musical which we hoped would enthuse our students and encourage them to get involved. The story focuses on the themes of friendship, home and facing a challenging journey. These themes are important aspects of life at LEHF, where for many students the school has become a second home away from home, a place where they make new friends, and a place where every day we face new challenges, whether it be within our school work, or the challenge of creating our first musical production.
The rehearsals of "The Wizard of Oz" are in full swing, could you share some of the highlights so far?
The first highlight for me was seeing so many students eager to join the cast. Initially, over 50 students showed an interest in performing in the show. I was impressed because that is about half of all students in school which is much more than I would normally have expected.
One example was when we asked for volunteers to try to speak like a witch or a munchkin. There were some very funny attempts and we all enjoyed hearing each other try to create these voices. It was also good to see everyone trying out some dance steps in our first dance rehearsal. Working on a production like this pushes us all to try things we never imagined ourselves trying, and for me, seeing students engaging in these things is what makes it most enjoyable.
The Benefits of Joining the school production
I was inspired to work in the performance industries and eventually become a teacher directly from the experiences I had taking part in school productions when I was at school. Therefore, I know exactly how much benefit can be gained from taking part in the experience of a whole school production. I hope that students will reflect after the production is completed and find that they have discovered those same feelings of pride and sense of achievement that I still experience, in themselves.
There are also the new friendships that will be formed. The school production enhances that further by bringing students from all year groups together in pursuit of a common goal.
The knock-on effect of each of these things is greater confidence, which is demonstrated in many ways, such as, confidence with reading and speaking English, confidence when working as part of a team, and demonstrating commitment and a willingness to try new things.
How does it improve the students’ language ability?
All performers in the production become familiar with reading the libretto, which is the name we give to a musical script. The language of the characters has to become familiar to the performers, so they will spend time learning it and what it means. There will be new words they come across, and music, dance and drama terms that we will refer to in rehearsals. All this will help to develop students’ language skills. Many of them will have speaking parts, that will require them to practise projecting their voices and speaking with clarity and intonation. We have already discovered that some of the songs are really fast, so we are having fun trying to articulate with speed and accuracy.
Can you explain the process of producing a school musical?
Producing a musical is actually a very long process and involves a large number of people, many of whom the audience will never see. It begins with selecting the musical and applying to the rights holders for a performance license. Different production elements, such as, set, lighting, sound, and costumes have to be designed, chosen and created etc.
Rehearsals begin with learning songs and reading through the script. Then we begin blocking, which is where we decide where each character will enter and exit, and where they will stand or move around on the stage. Dances and songs are gradually developed and improved, actors learn their lines and build their characters, and scenes start to take shape.
Eventually, we begin technical rehearsals when all the production elements and performances begin to come together, culminating, we hope, in a fabulous series of performances.
What stage is the play at now?
Right now, we are just beginning the blocking div of rehearsals, so we are still early on in the process. At the same time ideas for the discussions about the sound, and lighting are taking place, ideas for costumes and props are being shared, and some scenery is being built. There is never a time during a production when it is not busy!
What are you expecting in the next three months?
Hopefully, the next three months will see us gradually bringing all the parts that make up a production together. The hard work that is going on by the vast number of people involved will begin to create a buzz of anticipation and excitement around the school. We are most looking forward to sharing all this hard work with an appreciative audience, and I look forward to seeing everyone enjoy the climax of this epic journey at the end of March.
Preparations for "The Wizard of Oz" are still underway and we thank the parents who have volunteered to support and help us in every way, which just goes to show the community spirit of LEHF and proves that the school's first big musical theatre show cannot be done without a collaborative team effort. Finally, let's all look forward to the "The Wizard of Oz" musical performance.
