C R E AT I V E & C U LT U R A L
Drama BE OUR GUEST! We have enjoyed another year of spectacular drama productions, including our biennial show Beauty and the Beast. Our pupil Rosie McLeish took a look behind the scenes to capture the show fever and spell-binding action. Behind the scenes with the principals… Alex Phillips (The Beast) and Ellie Spencer (Belle) gave me some insight into their characters. Spencer says “She can be very sweet and pure but she has feisty characteristics that come through, so I would say I’m similar to her.” Phillips however revealed that “I’m not a particularly angsty person to be honest, so the whole ‘everything’s so bad and depressing’ thing is difficult.” He’s been working on his roar and “taking steroids and hitting the gym” to help himself prepare for the challenge of the role. For Spencer, the journey through the rehearsal process hasn’t been easy. “It’s the confidence… I don’t do A Level drama so firstly it’s your doubt in yourself, but you’ve just got to keep practising,” she reveals. However anyone who saw her performance on stage will know that her worries were not remotely needed. Say ‘Hello’ to the cast… What’s been really lovely in this production is getting to know new people. Corny as it sounds, singing heartwarming classics while dancing (moving vaguely in time) in clothes you normally wouldn’t be seen dead in is a truly bonding experience. I can’t be the only one who finds the gaps between the years frustrating, and it’s amazing how fast you start to see other people in the cast in the corridors and start to say hello.
Milly Gray (Babette) says “I love the atmosphere on Tuesday with everyone. There are pupils from Third Form to Upper Sixth working both on and off stage and you meet people you might not otherwise have known.”
“Singing heartwarming classics while dancing (moving vaguely in time) in clothes you normally wouldn’t be seen dead in is a truly bonding experience.” Beth Wheelhouse (Chip) appreciates that “the princess isn’t the one who’s being saved… I like how the princess is the clever one and she saves, well, everyone.” Ellie Spencer (Belle) also approves of this “feminist icon” and also says she loves “that the villain doesn’t look like the villain.”
The Peterite 2018–2019
105
