Students become ‘theatre-makers of tomorrow’ in Connections Festival

Performing Arts students from Burton and South Derbyshire College (BSDC) are pleased to once again, be participating in the National Theatre’s Connections Festival.

Each year, the National Theatre commissions ten new plays for young people to perform, bringing together some of the UK’s most exciting writers with the theatre-makers of tomorrow.

Students from Level 3 Acting and Musical Theatre courses, assisted by Level 3 Production Skills students, created a performance of Wind/Rush Generation(s) by Mojisola Adebayo. They performed this in the College’s Fleet Street Theatre on Thursday 21st March, to their National Theatre director and mentor.

The play centres around a group of university students who attempt to use a Ouija board to contact a spirit in their common room. Through the Ouija board they observe scenes all linked to race, racial injustice through history with links to the recent Windrush scandal.

Elise Brassington, Musical Theatre Course Leader at BSDC said: “We are extremely proud of how the students performed this very challenging piece, which tackles difficult themes. The National Theatre director who came to watch their home performance was also very complimentary and positive about their performance.”

Over 250 youth theatre companies from every corner of the UK take part in the Connections Festival each year, providing opportunities for them to perform in professional, partner theatres.

One production of each play will be selected to transfer to the NT Festival in London, the National Theatre’s annual, nationwide youth theatre festival. When selecting groups to take part, the National Theatre team look for clarity and audibility, clear storytelling, conviction and energy. Judges like to see productions that have observed and realised the writer’s intentions for the play. They are also interested in how groups respond to feedback from the National Theatre directors and mentors when transferring their play to the Partner Theatre Festival.

BSDC students are excited to be performing at Derby Theatre on Friday 26th April – tickets can be purchased on the Derby Theatre website.