Stories

St Dunstan’s College Senior School is delighted to announce it has been nominated for four awards at the National School Theatre Awards for its recent production of Les Misérables.

The production, which saw the Great Hall transformed into the streets of Paris, has been nominated for Best Musical, Best Student Lighting Design, Best Actor in a Musical and Best Actress in a Musical.

Speaking about the nominations, Director of Drama, Richard Gregg said: ‘We are thrilled to be nominated in four categories for our production of Les Misérables, it is a reflection of the excellent work the cast, crew and musicians put into bringing this epic musical to the stage.

‘The independent review of the show highlights the exceptionally high standard of the performing arts students here at St Dunstan’s, of whom we are incredible proud.’

The School Theatre Awards are dedicated to recognising the talents of young people aged 11-18 in school performing arts. The awards provide a platform for young people to showcase their skills and gain recognition from industry professionals.

A representative from the awards attended the Saturday night performance, explained: ‘A large cast of 52 combined well with a lovely orchestra who gave us a high-quality soundtrack under the direction of Mrs Money, all supported by an excellent creative team of pupils and teachers, whose backstage work did wonders to support the onstage performance. At the centre of it all were the experienced hands of Mr Richard Gregg, who brought everything together very effectively. He also did an excellent job with the wigs!

‘From the moment I entered the striking Great Hall, however, I knew that the College would do justice to this musical theatre great. The conversion of the Hall into a theatre had been completed very effectively and imposing dark tiled walls created the perfect atmosphere, transporting us to 19 th century France instantly and setting the scene for Revolution.

‘Any production of Les Misérables depends very deeply on high quality singing and emotive lighting. Throughout, the singing was excellent and the lighting design by Lucas was outstanding. Rich colours helped tell the tale at every step, with the design demonstrating extraordinary creativity, intricate planning, and excellent visual storytelling. Time and again, the lighting enhanced pivotal moments, such as Fantine’s death in the hospital, Valjean’s ‘Bring Him Home’ (particularly beautifully lit), and the obligatory French flag in lights to finish.’

The winners will be announced in June.