DON QUIXOTE AND SKYPING
Last week, pupils in Years 9-11 were given the opportunity to watch a great French play courtesy of the European Onatti Theatre Company.
The play was highly entertaining and appreciated by all. The two French actors, Claire and Julien, played the roles of the various characters using plenty of humour and a level of French that was accessible for all of our pupils. Audience involvement made the play even more enjoyable! Everyone was extremely enthusiastic about the performance and pupils from Year 10 and 11 said ‘It was hilarious!’ and ‘I actually understood all of it!’.
We look forward to welcoming the Onatti Theatre Company back on 12th February when they will put on a play for the younger years.
While it was all ‘très bien’ last week, it was all ‘fantástico’ this week. On Monday, we were lucky enough to welcome The Firewalk Theatre, a Spanish theatre company who perform solely in Spanish. Years 10 to 13 watched the production and we were also delighted to welcome four other schools, including Godolphin and Downside. The Firewalk Theatre performed Don Quixote, an adaption of a famous Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes, a legendary Spanish writer. It was performed by two actors who multi-roled a number of different characters. It was clear from the comments afterwards that the play was hugely enjoyed by all.
This is what pupils said:
Maisie Fogg: “This has reinforced my love of learning languages and has made me want to continue learning them next year.”
Ed Corderoy: “I was amazed at how much I understood. It was educational yet highly amusing.”
Esther Kirrage: “For me watching an authentic Spanish production was really beneficial. I have picked up a good deal of vocab.”
Max Godfrey-Fausset: “The performance was good and the actors were enthusiastic. I loved it.”
Not only do our pupils get the opportunity to watch plays in French and Spanish, they are also able to use the language they are learning in Skype conversations. This week, Year 9, who last term hosted our Spanish exchange pupils so successfully, got really stuck in to Skype conversations with pupils in our French partner school in Cognac. We are lucky that this year, one of the Year 9 French lessons coincides with an English lesson in France, and our French partners are so keen to cement this relationship that many of them are even prepared to stay behind after school on another day in order to skype with our pupils.
It has been an interesting time for our linguists and it is great to see them seizing all the opportunities that come their way to practise their language skills.
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