A group of 12 Verdon College students—Regional winners of the annual University of Otago Sheilah Winn Festival of Shakespeare In Schools - competed in the National Festival over Queen’s Birthday weekend. The students Rosamund More, Olivia Canny, Cody Shuttleworth, Rachel Butler, Ben Cochrane, Alice McDowell, Ben Wilmot, Braydon Macdonald, Natalie Kerr, Olivia Gorton, Rebecca Abey and Jamie Macdonald - were accompanied by the director Mrs Horrell and teacher Mrs More.Verdon College’s punk rock version of ‘A Midsummer Nights Dream’ achieved the award for Outstanding use of Music and Song in Performance. The performance was delivered with conviction and energy and had great audience appeal.
Over the long weekend festival period, apart from the competition itself, students took part in stimulating workshops. The workshops were taken by professional actors and directors in the theatre profession. Popular workshops included stage combat, contemporising Shakespeare, giving 100% to your audience and ‘playing dead’.
In addition to the Shakespeare festival, other wonderful cultural experiences included live theatre, a Greek restaurant meal and an exploration of inner city Wellington (including a visit to Te Papa Museum for some).The group were a delight to journey with and our Verdon students were excellent ambassadors of Southland.
