Well, the EBS Production for 2024 was, yet again, a triumph! This year we staged Oliver! The Musical, a true classic, that the team re-invigorated with great EBS spirit. It was a sell-out show yet again with over 800 tickets sold!
Confident performances were seen from students across all year groups with the lead, Oliver, being played by the brilliant Leon Vispap in Year 7. It is so great to see how, year after year, we have such emerging talent at EBS, and it’s just as exciting to see new older faces on the stage, such as Year 12 Jay O’Neill, who played a fab Bill Sykes. We saw some perfect double acts in Mr and Mrs Bumble (Sam Board and Anna Volstad) and besties Nancy and Bet (Imogen Worrell and Erin Smith-Appollis) and Klee Theodorou was a perfectly loveable and cheeky Dodger. There were simply too many great performances to mention! If you would like to have a read of the full list of performers, a letter from the director, Mr. Messios (and much more), our Oliver! programme is below.
The singing was simply breath taking. If the songs didn’t have our toes tapping or the audience clapping along to the likes of Consider Yourself or Oom-Pah-Pah from the whole cast, we were holding back the tears from beautiful solo renditions of As Long as He Needs Me and Where is Love?. What’s so great about our EBS performances is that the drama is supported by a live orchestra from start to finish. The hard work of the student musicians and Ms Gough and Mrs Eustace  was evident and was a real treat to hear. We are looking forward to hearing more from them in our Summer Concert on 21st May!
The set design was simply inspired, and the backstage team in tech, wardrobe and props did such a sterling job with our new stage. Mr Potter has upped his game once again, and the results were stunning. The choreography and physicality was brilliant all-round. From the funny floor shuffling marriage proposal and Mr & Mrs Bumble shenanigans, to Fagin’s (Ivor Daniel) lesson in pickpocketing, the It’s Your Funeral dance and whole cast dance routines – just brilliant!
We hope that everyone reading this will agree that the talent showcased at Oliver! demonstrates so many of our EBS core values of “I want to learn” and “Do the right thing”:
- Sofia Casotti showed a true GROWTH MINDSET and decided to ramp up the comedy with her frustratingly funny addition of an incredibly sloooooowwwww walk.Â
- As well as being a brilliant Mr Brownlow, Charlie Obeney demonstrated great LEADERSHIP as Dance Captain, giving many hours of his time and skills to work with the cast. His impact on the overall show was enormous!
- Rehearsals can be tiring and we thank all of our students and staff for their MOTIVATION in keeping with it, (it paid off in bucketloads!).Â
- Our backstage teams made their HARD WORK with costume, tech and props look effortless when it was anything but – a big well done!
- Poppy Rosser in wardrobe truly showed KINDNESS by helping another student when they fell ill and saved the show by jumping on (in her England top!) at the very last moment.Â
- It is a pleasure to see such RESPECT and care that the team have shown to one another as they have spent months perfecting their performances. The older performers have been such great role models and have been instrumental in helping the younger crew hone their skills.
- It goes without saying that all of these practices and performances happen alongside the students continuing with their studies. That shows real grit, determination and INTEGRITY; right down to the fact that the students stayed after four back to back days of performances to clear down and pack away – what superstars!
A special mention must go to three of our Year 13 students who have been an integral part of the EBS Drama scene since they joined in Year 7. Sam Board, Lottie Rachel and Anna Volstad are leaving EBS this year after completing their A-Levels. Good luck to all of you, you will be missed terribly and have truly inspired the next generation of EBS actors.
Lastly we would like to shout out you – our audience – thank you for coming, singing along, buying programmes and drinks, and for being the students’ biggest supporters – roll on next year!
