Challenging Radio Play By Guildford School Of Acting Is A Product Of Lockdown

Published on: 8 Jul, 2020
Updated on: 8 Jul, 2020

As the world went into lockdown, graduates of the Guildford School of Acting’s BA actor musician course were faced with the devastating prospect of losing the opportunity to perform The Changeling by Middleton and Rowley – the play they had been rehearsing for months.

Students worked in isolation at their homes, composing, performing and delivering their performances for the radio play.

Undeterred, the cast and crew responded to the Covid-19 restrictions by rapidly reimagining the production as a radio play, under the guidance of programme Leader, Nicholas Scrivens, and head of music, Paul Herbert.

Rehearsed entirely on a conferencing platform, under the direction of Tam Williams and musical director, Lee O’Reilly, the performance features original music by the students themselves and was recorded and performed by the students from their own homes.

Students recording their parts for the radio play.

Nicholas Scrivens said: “Students worked in isolation, composing, performing and delivering their performances. The passion and commitment to their work show in the final presentation and is testament to how brilliant they have been across their three years. They have delivered an extraordinary performance in extraordinary times.”

“2020 has been very hard, but one of the things that the Guildford School of Acting has striven to do is to make sure that students still have robust and key skills training, even in the most difficult of times.

“It has always been the case that part of the role of an actor is to use every tool possible; music, voice, body, song and now, as these talented young performers have demonstrated, new technologies to enable us to keep creating and recreating these stories.”

Alongside other features such as extra scenes, music, cast and creatives, click here to listen to it.

This story is based on a press release from the University of Surrey, at whose Stag Hill campus the Guildford School of Acting is based.