Drama - Hampton School

Drama provision at Hampton School is superb, allowing boys to fulfil their potential and pursue their interest in the theatre, whether it is on stage, in the director’s chair or behind the scenes in a technical capacity. A wide range of School productions are staged throughout the year and are open to all ages.

National Theatre Live

Hampton School is an accredited venue for National Theatre Live screenings allowing boys and the Hampton community affordable access to world class theatre.

THE HAMMOND THEATRE

Facilities

The School offers outstanding facilities for Drama productions.

The Hammond Theatre

Our professional standard theatre is a venue to rival any school in the country and offers the perfect environment for a wide range of performances. It seats 380 people, is fully equipped with state-of-the-art lighting and sound technology and is run by a full time technical team.

The Drama Hall

Situated in the Garrick building, the hall is used as a performance space, rehearsal and teaching room and as a venue for drama workshops by visiting professional practitioners. The Drama Hall also has a lighting rig and a range of audio visual equipment.

Dance Studio

Hampton also offers an excellent dance studio with mirrored walls and wooden sprung floor which is used for academic lessons and co-curricular work. Dances for the School’s biennial musical are rehearsed in the studio, and during lessons it is used as a facility for chorus and movement work.

Co-Curricular

School Musical

These extremely popular musicals are performed as a joint production with Lady Eleanor Holles every year. Pupils from Third Year and above are encouraged to take part and competition for principle roles is very strong. Previous musicals have included Mack and Mable, West Side Story and Anything Goes.

Junior Musical

Taking place biennially, these musicals offer First to Fourth Year pupils the opportunity to take part in a large scale production, often joint with Waldegrave School. Previous musicals have included Oliver! and Tin Pan Ali.

Lower School play

Boys from First to Third Year are invited to participate in this annual production, taking place in the Summer term. Previous plays have included The Ramayana and Jason and the Argonauts.

Middle School Play

Fourth Year Hamptonians perform alongside pupils from Lady Eleanor Holles in this production.

Sixth Form Play

There is the opportunity for Sixth Form dramatists to perform a play in the Spring term. This can be either a student or teacher led production. Previous Sixth Form directed plays have included, Death of a Salesman, And Then There Were None and A View from a Bridge.

Co-Curricular

Junior Drama Club

Open to all boys in the First, Second and Third year, this club meets during lunchtime, once a week. Students work on their improvisation and performance skills through a series of games and exercises. The group produce an annual performance staged in the Autumn or Summer Term.

Technical Theatre Club

The Technical Theatre Club meets weekly and learns how to operate and programme the latest lighting and sound equipment in the Hammond Theatre. Pupils participating in this club support the technical needs of the regular Hampton School productions and are under continual guidance and supervision by the Technical Manager.

Trips

Each student studying Drama will visit the theatre at least once during the year to watch and evaluate a live professional performance.

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Lower Sixth pupils studying AS Level Drama and Theatre Studies attend the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. This year the department also plan to take a production and perform it at the Fringe Festival.