Hurst Festival

As part of the Hurst Festival, the College hosted a variety of performing arts events, welcoming audiences from the local community who were keen to support. The drama department put on a spectacular interpretation of Edward Bond’s The Tin Can People. Followed by the annual Cake at the College, hosted by the Music department.

Tin Can People  

After two years of minimal audience interaction, it was great for Sixth Formers to return to the theatre in front of a live audience. This year’s Sixth Form production, which formed part of the Hurst Festival, was based on the second book of Edward Bond’s trilogy The War Plays.  

In this instalment, nuclear bombs have fallen, erasing the world as we know it. A very small community of survivors are left behind, forced to live together without seeing another soul for 30 years. They have a plentiful reserve of tinned food, a whole city’s worth of houses and they must no longer work. If it were not for the memories of the bomb falling and the shadows of the dead, it could even be described as paradise. 

After a man appears on the perimeter road to the commune, the first fresh face they have seen in decades, the community are faced with a choice. Is this man trustworthy? Or do they cast him out to continue to live in the wilderness? When it appears the man is carrying a deadly disease, can they trust him never to return?   

This thought-provoking play left the audience questioning the individual’s responsibility towards his fellow man and society’s innate obsession with developing tools to destroy itself rather than develop into a more civilized world.  

The students put on a sterling performance, despite the setbacks faced prior to opening night. With a few cast members swapping due to isolation, members of the Lower Sixth stepped up with less than 48 hours’ notice. The cast pulled together to produce an incredible set of performances.  

 Cake at the College  

The Music School remains proud of its annual contribution to the locally organised Hurst Festival. After the first of this year’s offerings, the Music scholar’s recital, the second offering was Cake at the College.  

Residents of the village packed the  Music School . While they sipped on their tea and enjoyed their cake, supplied by the College kitchens, they listened to musical performances of varying style.  

To read more about Music and Drama at Hurst.