Brentwoodian 2019

30 The Hunchback of Notre Dame The Hunchback of Notre Dame was an extraordinary and unforgettable play put on by the hugely talented Third and Fourth year students during February 2019. Through the tireless efforts of our superb actors, a skilled technical team, and our expert teachers, in under eight short weeks an unforgettable showcase was created that resonated with every member of the cast and Brentwood School’s Drama department. During the performance, the audience was taken on both an unforgettable and exceedingly comical journey through the quaint 15th century city of Paris. When working with the extremely experienced Mrs Clark and many outstanding Sixth Formers, no matter what part we had managed to attain, as an ensemble our ability as actors flourished and thrived and moved from strength to strength, learning skills that would stay with us as performers forever. During rehearsals we were guided outside of our comfort zones, which is where we developed and learned from our weaknesses, whether it was practising new accents, or learning how to transform yourself into your character using every part of your body from your head to your toes. To me, one of the most important and key lessons Mrs Clark taught us during the process of this play, was the humbling yet encouraging idea that there are no such thing as small parts, only parts that are played small. This remarkable lesson united us as a cast and made us all work together as a team to ensure we were all the best actors we could be and that there was no shortage of compassion within any of us. Mrs Clark was the inspirational and irreplaceable Director of this performance, and none of what we achieved would have been possible without her and her undeniable expertise. Personally, and I know I speak on behalf of the whole cast, the hours and hours of work that everyone put into this play couldn't have paid off more. The memorable outcome fully reflected every bit of effort that was put in, and I know we are all grateful and proud to have been a part of what was an incredible experience By Eima Cupples In the play The Hunchback of Notre Dame , I played the hero, Phoebus. This was the first time I had played a main character in a play so I was honoured to get to play a big character like this. When the casting had taken place and rehearsals began it struck us how little time we had to pull the show together; knowing this the cast had to really pick up pace and work efficiently and quickly. The cast was amazing and we had a brilliant team to work with during the making of the production and the performers were incredibly skilled. On top of this the cast made rehearsals a blast and a safe environment to work in, and the support given by everyone to each other was amazing to see. This is true with all of the Drama department with regard to the stunning amount of support given to everyone included in it. As the date of the performance rapidly approached everything started to come together and the cast pulled through and got everything finished. Overall I found it extremely fun to perform and a thrill to be a part of. I also think it shows us what good teamwork and support can do, which is the Brentwood way, teamwork and support. By Zack Lingard "We were taught the humbling yet encouraging idea that there are no such thing as small parts, only parts that are played small."