Thursday 23-11-2017 - 09:31

(Enter stage right and stand in the centre facing the crowd and smile)

It’s nearly the holidays but before the end of term approaches, there’s something you shouldn’t miss: the GCU Drama society showcase! On Wednesday the 13^th of December in the Social Learning Space downstairs in the Students’ Association building, two plays will be performed by the club and their teams of actors, actress’ and stage crew.

Grab a £3 ticket and come along to enjoy the evening of hilarity as Una, Ezgi, Lisa, Jonnie, Andrew and Colin bring to life the trials of being a toy in a nursery. The play “Outside the Box” was written by JPS Yates and is a tale everyone could enjoy. Not only is the ragdoll afraid of being totally neglected for the shiny, new doll but the group are shocked by the threat that one of them may be sent to Oxfam by the fairy. Will they all still work in the nursery by morning time?

The second play is utterly hilarious: named “Tea and Biscuits” and written by Paul West, it’s far from any tea and biscuits scene I’ve ever seen. As the PTA meeting settles in to discuss matters, odd things begin to happen. It’s not until they discover the cursed teapot that they realise what has happened and attempt to sort it. But they worry it will not work out in time.

President of the society, Lauren Tritschler, explained that the society is putting on the show with one full length satire and one short comedy to showcase the talents of the society members.

She added: “This year the society has basically been split into two groups. We have our actors and, for the first time, we have an actual backstage crew for those who prefer to be behind the scenes, which is really exciting. Everyone's got their own role this time round so it really feels like a group effort.” 

“Our performances are part of what makes our society unique. GCU, as a whole, doesn't really feature many - if any - performances of this kind so our events are one of the few ways students get to embrace the art of theatre while supporting other students. It always ends up being a fun evening and we always celebrate in true Drama fashion with a great night out afterwards, which our audience is invited to.”

Having met the cast, it was clear they all think it’s going to be a show not to be missed and encourage people to come along:

-Ezgi: “you should come and see the play because you will get to see two funny performances. This is amazing to be part of and you might make new friends.”

-Mark: “It is a fun experience, a lot of laughs and the audience will have a good time.”

-Jonnie: “it will be a great warm up for Sassmas (he said with a chuckle) and there’s no other society doing this kind of thing within GCU.”

-Robbie: “Come and see it because we’ve worked so hard to impress you all.”

-Lisa: “We’ve worked hard to bring it altogether and it would be nice for people to see what we’ve done.”

-Jess: “it’s really funny and something completely different.”

-Una: “The audience can see how much fun the society is and that if we can do it anyone can do it.”

-Kyle: “It’s quite a comedic play and should be really entertaining.”

-Andrew: “It’s fun and we still make mistakes but it’s not serious, it’s just us.”

-Lauren: “This is one of the only things the uni does that’s like this, the only thing that involved theatre. It’s not serious theatre like Shakespeare or anything – they make mistakes and it will just be totally us.”

-Colin: “It’s always a good laugh.”

Walking around the rehearsal it is clear this bunch ooze talent. Even when only reading lines it makes you giggle and draws you in, eager to find out what happens. As the showcase is in the middle of exams, it would also serve as the perfect way to take a couple of hours off – one and a half for the show at least.

Lauren said: “Most of our members this year are new to the society but we do have a few familiar faces. Our committee were all members last year and we have one member who's been part of the Drama Society for at least three years now. Some of our backstage crew were in the audience last year and now they're putting this performance together. So, we're all learning together really.”

As the backstage crew were hard at work, measuring and discussing how things would work, the cast were learning lines and running scenes. Watching it come together is thrilling to watch so I wrongly assumed they had been rehearsing for ages but was far off the mark.

President Lauren said: “It's so much work to put together a performance on a scale like this. We only have 12 weeks to create, cast and rehearse this in two hour meetings, which really depends on the commitment of our members. Luckily this year with our production crew, the workload is shared better but it's still quite intense. It's a real dedication but it will be worth it.”

The society are also hoping to do their bit for the community. Lauren said: “We're discussing sharing our profits with a charity that has yet to be decided.”

The time is still to be confirmed but for £3 a ticket for an evening of laughter and enjoyment, I think it’s definitely one to mark on the calendar.

(Bow and exit stage left)

 

Written and photography by

Communications Team volunteer

Tamsin Ross