Budding young directors and playwrights were given the opportunity to take full ownership of the creative process; from writing or adapting the script to casting, auditioning, rehearsing and arranging all the backstage elements.

From schoolgirl pranks gone wrong in Snitches get Stitches, written and directed by Upper Fourth girls, Katie and Olga, to Stage 1, written and directed by Daria and Elfreda in the Lower Fifth which presented a dystopian vision of the future, all the plays explored what happens when young people are pushed to make extreme and sometimes life-changing decisions. Winehouse took the audience through a journey of singer, Amy Winehouse’s life and the reality behind celebrity life and its writer and director, Marina in the Upper Fifth said, “When writing my script, I had fun conjuring up a picture of the performance, hearing the sound effects and seeing the choreography – it has been an amazing experience!”

The Stars Among Us, written and directed by Upper Fifth, Alice, tells the story of two best friends, one of whom needs a kidney transplant and the other who offers to be her donor and the consequences. Alice said, “I created this play because I wanted to experiment with traditional chronology in theatre, whilst exploring themes of love, loss and forgiveness. Although the process has been a challenge, I have thoroughly enjoyed writing and staging the script, choreographing a dance sequence and adapting the music.”

In This Changes Everything, three girls turn away from society to seek to find a new way of living together and the play, originally written by Joel Horwood, was adapted and directed by Agnes and Susannah from the Lower Fifth.

Head of Extra-Curricular Drama, Mrs Watson said, “Directors’ Shorts came about in response to requests from the girls themselves wishing to have the chance to see their own creations on the Downe House stage. This talented group of girls have taken full ownership of every step of the process of staging a play and our cast members should also be highly commended for their outstanding contributions. We enjoyed an unforgettable evening of exciting and innovative new theatre!”

See the photos from Directors’ Shorts here: