The Hayworth Players perform at Dance East

The Hayworth Players took their production of Shakespeare’s ‘Measure for Measure’ to Dance East in Ipswich last Tuesday to perform alongside casts from two local schools as part of the Coram Shakespeare Schools Festival. The performance was described by Mr Davies as ‘a real treat!’, ‘A strong and convincing performance which was well acted and tightly directed’. In his post-show appraisal, Martin Leonard, who has been both an assistant and associate director at the Globe, among many other directorial credits, praised the cast and crew for the powerful interpretation they created, from the out-of-control debauchery of a city to the menacing demands of its temporary ruler (as Isabella notes, ‘this sainted outward-sainted deputy is yet a devil’) and the way that the pupils commanded the space and brought this complicated story to life for the audience.

We are incredibly proud of all the pupils involved and very grateful for all the time and effort that went into creating such a sophisticated piece of theatre. Jack was flawless in his operation of the sound cues, with the lighting and sound designs of the Hayworth Technical Team proving highly successful in creating the setting and atmosphere for each scene. All of the performers deserve praise for their strong ensemble and individual performances: Anoushka handled Shakespeare’s language expertly, Izzie and Mimi created powerful tension in their scenes, Elizabeth drew the audience in with powerful energy and commitment, Aneira brought out the desperate emotions of Claudio’s predicament, Anna-Mia developed two contrasting characterisations in her skilled use of multi-role, and Charlie, Agatha, Astrid, Oliver and Emily all developed strong performances, with a focus and commitment that held the audience’s attention throughout the piece and supported our understanding of the developing situations.

It was a highly successful project, and a fantastic opportunity to take our work into a professional theatre venue.