Music and Theatre Events 2026-27

It has been another vibrant and busy period across Performing Arts, with students immersing themselves in rehearsals, technical production work, high-profile dance workshops, and a wide array of career-enriching trips and events.

Drama & Theatre Performance

Following a successful audition process involving over 50 students across the college, rehearsals are now well underway for our upcoming production of Frankenstein. Set materials are being sourced and design plans are developing rapidly as the Drama department works with the cast during Wednesday and Thursday afternoon rehearsal slots. To ensure a professional staging experience, the lighting provision in The Theatre is being upgraded over half-term and will be fully operational ahead of the show.

In the curriculum, Lower Sixth A-Level Drama students are busy developing practical work for their assessment before Christmas. Meanwhile, Upper Sixth students have begun rehearsals for their practical exam, focusing on Punk Rock by Stockport playwright Simon Stephens, which will be featured in our March theatre showcase.

We are also excited to announce that Josh Hawkins, Director of Hawk Dance Theatre, is booked to lead specialist workshops with both the Frankenstein cast and A-Level Drama students across the final week of December.

Dance

Dance activity across the department is thriving, driven by both student leadership and expert industry input:

• Student-Led Enrichment: Dance enrichment takes place every Thursday at 2:30 pm, providing a fantastic student-led space for creative expression and practice outside of the timetable.
• Specialist Street Dance Workshops: Upper Sixth students have benefited from high-level practical training, including a street dance workshop led by ex-student Holly Andrews, as well as technique sessions with professional dancer Laura Summers exploring Popping, Locking, Breaking, and Waacking.
• Professional Choreography Project: Professional dancer and choreographer Josh Hawkins will be working with our Lower Sixth Dance students after half-term to create a bespoke piece ready for our main Dance Show in December.

Music & Music Technology Ensembles

The Christmas music has arrived for our enrichment groups! The AQ Orchestra is working towards our annual Christmas concert, rehearsing the original score of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker alongside a selection of festive movie favourites. The AQ Choir is tackling complex harmonies with a new Pentatonix arrangement of What Christmas Means to Me, balanced with traditional classics such as John Rutter’s Star Carol.

A-Level Music students have recently completed a performance and recording of Corelli’s Trio Sonata in D, Op.3 No.2. They are now turning their attention to the first movement of Stamitz’s Symphony No.2 in D to support their study of the development of the symphony, which we look forward to hearing at the Christmas Concert.

Collaborative Projects & Facilities Upgrades

This term highlights fantastic collaboration between our music courses. Upper Sixth BTEC Music students are preparing for recording sessions where they will perform for A-Level Music Technology students to record, mix, and master. Using the main music room as a live space, Music Technology students are focusing on multi-mic drum recording techniques to capture high-quality audio—a crucial phase ahead of their Component 1 coursework editing and mixing stages.

Our music computer suite has also received significant technical upgrades:

• Quick-Access Recording:Four of our 20 Cubase 14 workstations now feature Focusrite Scarlett interfaces, enabling fast, ad-hoc recording for guitar, bass, and scratch vocals during and outside of lessons.
• Hardware Integration: A dedicated workstation has been equipped with a multi-channel audio/MIDI interface, allowing seamless integration with hardware synthesizers, samplers, and mixing desks for advanced workflows.

Students have already put these upgraded systems to good use, including an engaging hands-on Motown mixing project.

Trips, Enrichment & HE Opportunities

Students across Performing Arts have benefited from extensive industry links and enrichment trips this term:

• Drama Trips & Events: All Drama students will attend the Create Your Future Performing Arts event in Manchester on 11th November. Upcoming theatre trips include Billy Elliot on 7th January and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time on 4th March. Additionally, Helen Mason from Salford University will conduct specialist workshops in early January for students applying to higher education.
• Music Trips & Events: Following a visit from WaterBear Music College on 7th October, students attended a Music Careers Expo on 14th October featuring five high-profile HE providers. On Friday 16th October, A-Level Music students visited the Bridgewater Hall for the annual Hallé Set Works concert to hear their set scores brought to life by the world-famous orchestra.

Overall, the Performing Arts Department continues to thrive, offering our students an exceptional mix of practical performance, modern technology, and real-world industry connections.