Drama

The Ryleys is unusual in that it gives every boy the opportunity to be in a theatrical production every year. These are not token efforts, they are frequently up to an hour and a half in length: they may have four to fourteen choral numbers and feature casts from twenty to eighty. An army of staff, parents and grandparents help with make-up, costumes and lighting. The Headmaster paints the scenery and Senior boys run the backstage chaos!

In a recent Year 5/6 production, the show had a cast of forty two with every boy having a speaking part and the opportunity to sing – many of them solo.

The show was hugely entertaining and was thoroughly enjoyed by a packed audience. This was a typical Ryleys School production not anything unusual, just one of four major shows we put on each year.

Our drama productions are spread out throughout the school year as follows:

• The Junior School stage a show at Easter with recent performances including “Noahs Ark” and “Aesop’s Fables”
• The Middle School put on a production at Christmas the latest being “Don’t be a Scrooge at Christmas” and “The Evacuees”
• The Senior School Years 5 and 6 stage their shows at Easter. Shows have included a comic mystery “ Murder at The Hotel Crumhorn” and a musical version of “Treasure Island”
• Years 7 and 8 put on their production at the end of the Summer Term. They have performed the musical “Smike” and even open air Shakespeare.

Drama is also offered as an extra curricular activity to many year groups in the school.