Our Year 10 Drama pupils recently took part in an exciting and engaging practical workshop exploring Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers as part of their BTEC Performing Arts studies.
The workshop was delivered by a former Turves Green Boys’ School pupil, who returned to the school to share his experience, knowledge and practical skills with our current pupils. It was fantastic to welcome a former pupil back into school and see him inspiring the next generation of performers.
The session focused on some of the key performance skills needed to bring the characters and relationships in Blood Brothers to life. Pupils explored characterisation, relationships, dramatic tension and the use of emotion, developing their understanding of how actors can communicate meaning to an audience.
Through a range of practical exercises and activities, pupils experimented with how different characters might move, speak and respond to one another. They explored how physicality, facial expressions, vocal delivery and emotional choices can change the way an audience understands a character.
A particular focus was placed on the relationships between the characters and how these can be used to create dramatic tension. Pupils considered how tension develops throughout the play and how performers can use pauses, space, eye contact, movement and changes in voice to keep an audience engaged.
The workshop also encouraged pupils to take greater risks with their performances and explore the emotions behind their characters. Rather than simply learning lines, pupils were challenged to think about why their character behaves in a particular way and what they want to achieve within each scene.
The practical nature of the workshop gave pupils the opportunity to apply the ideas they have been learning in their BTEC Performing Arts lessons and develop their confidence as performers.
It was particularly valuable for our pupils to learn from someone who was once in their position as a Turves Green Boys’ School pupil. His journey provided an excellent example of how the skills developed through Performing Arts can continue beyond school.
A huge thank you to our former pupil for returning to Turves Green Boys’ School and delivering such an engaging and inspiring workshop. We look forward to seeing how our Year 10 pupils apply these skills as they continue their work on Blood Brothers.
