Theatre and Drama play a vital role in the make-up of The Maynard and are undoubtedly key components in equipping our students with the self-poise and confidence for which they are widely recognised.
Passion for the theatre and drama abounds and all the staff aim to pass on their love of theatre and the performing arts to students across the board. We offer a range of far-reaching opportunities throughout the school, with chances to explore and excel as performers, directors and designers in as many as 8 – 10 productions each year.
Our girls can choose to take part in performance work ranging from Drama Clubs at Upper 3 (Year 7) and Lower 4 (Year 8), to involvement in the whole school Senior Production, House Drama, seasonal projects, and on to GCSE and A-level.
Students in the Junior School also regularly perform in their own productions throughout the academic year and no-one is a stranger to the stage from Reception upwards!
The yearly whole school production is open to students from years 9-13 and is not only an event which showcases the talent and ability of our students but also is a chance for girls across the year groups to work together as a school – an exciting and memorable challenge! Often there is a collaboration with the Music Department in which various musicians form the band or chorus.
We often take this production to one of the theatres in Exeter to give our budding young actors and backstage specialists the opportunity to experience a professional stage. So far we have had sold out performances of amazing productions like Sister Act and Legally Blonde at The Barnfield Theatre, and had the opportunity to make the most of our fabulous Performing Arts Centre where we performed The Caucasian Chalk Circle and Mary Poppins.
On top of all this, we also run peripatetic LAMDA classes taught in small groups either at lunchtime or after school. The results for these examinations in recent years have been exceptional, with girls regularly achieving Distinction for their grade work. These students also have the opportunity to take part in the Devon and Exeter Performing Arts Festival in March where the quality of their teaching is key to them winning numerous categories.
Daisy Pulls It Off
Our fantastic 2022 production saw two casts bring to life the story of public elementary school girl Daisy and new best friend Trixie who face a myriad of adventures, midnight feasts and marvellous mysteries in the search for lost treasure.
Daisy Pulls It Off is a fast-paced, fun pastiche of the classic girls’ school stories of old. With splendid scrapes, midnight feasts, and lots of jolly hockey sticks, it harks back to a nostalgic bygone era. It’s 1927 and changes are afoot at Grangewood School for Girls. Daisy Meredith is the first scholarship girl from a public elementary school to successfully gain a place at Grangewood. Yet not everyone is happy about this progressive move. Daisy must summon all of her courage, enthusiasm, and plucky resolve to hold her ground against the cruel behaviour of fellow students, Sylvia and Monica. They have come up with a series of schemes to ruin Daisy’s reputation and get her expelled. However, Daisy is not alone in her efforts to keep her school place and maintain her honour. Her madcap best friend Trixie is on the case! She vows to support Daisy and clear her name.
Drama Scholarships
Each year the school offers Drama scholarships at 11+, 13+ and 16+ to students who display a talent for Drama and show an active interest in the subjects.
Scholars will be expected to actively contribute to Drama at The Maynard throughout their time at the school.
