Taking part in a theatre play competition for schools

[Marta Agudo Medina]

Last year my year 5 students took part in the "XIX Certamen de Teatro in English, organised by the Consejería de Educación. We used the classroom, the gym and the playground to put into practice different drama techniques through games. Moreover, we split the class in two groups with the help of the language assistant. As we prepared the musical "The Wizard of Oz" we used a digital board to learn the lyrics, a part from using professional actor's work as a model through Youtube. I also coordinated with the Music teacher to prepare the instrumental part of the songs. Parents were also involved in the set preparation.

We spent two months working non-stop but the effort was definitely worth it. In the end, despite being awarded with an honour mention, students agree the best prize was being given the chance to perform at a cultural centre's theatre in front of the whole school and their relatives.

It was a wonderful experience which I highly recommend.

[Laura Gutiérrez Herrero]

Wow, Marta!

That sound really good. I hadn't heard of such a "certamen". That is a wonderful idea.

Last year, in my former school, young adults put together a Pantomime for Christmas that was really fun and everybody ended up loving, despite the little material they had to bring it on stage and the lack of time to rehearse. It turned out really good, they had clever dialogues and a lot of irony and jokes about the political situation (as the tradition commands...!) Students were happily involved and they had the chance to develop their linguistic and drama skills. Adults very often are willing to become little children again! :-)