Blasts from the Past: A Parent’s Reflections on Drama at King’s

Now that the archive exhibition about the history of drama is on display, I asked archive volunteer and King’s parent Cathryn O’Hare about her memories of productions at the school.

If you would like to see the exhibition, or find out about the archive in general, please come along to our open archive drop-in session on 21 June: further details can be found here.

What has particularly struck you about drama at King's?

I’ve always been hugely impressed by the level of professionalism in the productions I’ve seen from the staging, costumes, sound, and lighting to the immense talent shown by the students on stage. A special mention must go to the revolving stage which I’ve seen in several productions and always brings its own level of apprehension and excitement.  It’s often hard to believe that the actors are school children and I’m certain that the experience of performing in Collyer Hall will be the inspiration for many to become professional performers and technicians in the future. I’ve always thought the House Drama Festival is particularly inspiring as its completely student led from selecting the play and editing it to a twenty-minute performance, through to casting, directing, making costumes, composing the music and sourcing props and scenery.

How have your children benefited from drama at King's?

There always seems to be an opportunity to participate in drama at all different levels at King’s, whether its house drama, lower or middle school productions, whole school productions or junior school plays. I have had three sons and a daughter at King’s. My older two sons are not natural dramatists and are more at home on the rugby, football or cricket pitch. I’m convinced that at any other school they are unlikely to have experienced the exhilaration of being part of a production, but at King’s they have both performed in several plays, and although it was pushing the boundaries of their comfort zone, they thoroughly enjoyed it. Being involved in a team production from the first rehearsals through to the final performance months later builds huge camaraderie and spirit amongst the cast and backstage team.  Whilst there are moments of crisis and doubt, there’s always lots of support and fun making it a very valuable and memorable experience.

The quality of the drama and range of opportunities at King’s was a significant factor in my daughter’s decision to join the Sixth Form. Unfortunately, her time in the Sixth Form coincided with the pandemic so she was only able to participate in two productions – 5/11 and The House Drama Festival, before school closed, and all live performances were cancelled – including the Edinburgh Festival which was a particular disappointment for her given KCS Theatre Co’s longstanding success at the fringe. Happily, she has continued to pursue her drama ambitions after leaving King’s including attending The Lir Academy and will be returning to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for the second year running this summer as a writer and performer with her sketch comedy troupe, The Durham Revue. 

Even though live performances in front of audiences couldn’t go ahead for several months, that didn’t mean drama at KCS was cancelled and during lockdown an ambitious project which epitomises the spirit and enthusiasm for drama at King’s was embarked upon by students and the drama department, compiling an impressive and very enjoyable film combining montages of students performing sketches, scenes and songs.

What were the most memorable moments in performances you’ve seen?

I have genuinely enjoyed all of the productions I’ve seen at King’s – stand-outs for me are 5/11, School of Rock, Dorian and the recent Coram Boy which my youngest son participated in as a singer and actor, which was momentous. However, the performance that I personally enjoyed the most (although was without doubt the most nervous watching) was Alverstone’s House Drama production of Green Hollow in 2020. I then had 3 children in the senior school and amazingly they had all been cast in the play. Slightly worryingly they all had to speak in Welsh accents which they managed with varying degrees of success. My youngest son was sitting next to me in Collyer Hall to watch his older siblings perform together, disappointed that as an 8-year-old in the Junior School he was far too young to join them on the stage. It was memorable just to see them perform together but to make it even better, Green Hollow won House Drama that year, so that moment would be very hard to top.

What are your memories of drama at King’s? As ever, please do email if you have stories to share: I can be contacted at archive@kcs.org.uk.

Dr Lucy Inglis | School Archivist