Shakespeare Drama Comp (Girls Schools): See who made it to the finals

The annual Interschool Shakespeare Drama Competition kicked off with the girls’ semi-final on Tuesday, 8 September. For the first time in a long time, the organizers accommodated the semi-finalists over a period of two days instead of three, thus the girls’ semi-final was a rigorous, tightly scheduled affair that began at 8.30 am and ended well past 8 pm. The plays approved by the panel of judges were selected excerpts from Antony and Cleopatra, Henry IV Part 1, King Lear, Love’s Labour Lost, Measure for Measure, Taming of the Shrew, Titus Andronicus and Winter’s Tale. Many schools chose to adapt Antony and Cleopatra and Taming of the Shrew, perhaps for their more female-friendly casts. A few schools, like Gateway College Negombo and Gateway Dehiwala, Visakha Vidyalaya and Bishop's College Colombo chose to tackle different plays. Both Gateway Negombo and Gateway Dehiwala took on Measure for Measure, with the latter being awarded the Best Novice School for their take on the play (complete with a classic monochrome set and minimum props). Visakha Vidyalaya was the only girl school to take on Titus Andronicus, one of Shakespeare’s more violent plays about Roman General Titus Andronicus, who returns from ten years of war to find only four out of twenty five sons remaining. Ladies College, Gateway College Kandy, Sri Sumangala Maha Vidyalaya Panadura, Saiva Mangiyar Vidyalayan and Devi Balika Vidyalaya all tackled Taming of the Shrew, with very little deviation from the traditional adaptation. Ladies College presented perhaps the best comically timed play of the day with an understanding of restraint when it came to their slapstick. Devi Balika Vidyalaya’s take was more ribald and hugely entertaining, with (actual) flying food and props and plenty of suggestive gestures. Antony and Cleopatra proved to be the Achilles Heel of the day, with none of the five schools that took on the play making it to the final. Most, however, presented fairly good takes of the tragedy, although all schools succumbed to a certain degree of melodrama in Cleopatra’s descent into temporary insanity after Antonio’s death. Costumes were extravagant and the sets were lavish. In the judges’ comments the schools were cautioned about the amount of sensitivity shown to the suicide scene, which the judges felt could have been handled with more gravitas and understanding. The judges for the semis-Feroze Kamardeen, Dr. Asoka De Zoysa and Sabreena Niles-commended the schools for their takes on the bard’s work, appreciating in particular the efforts of first-time actors on the Lionel Wendt stage. Kamardeen, presenting the observations, asked schools to stick to the excerpt given and for more commitment by individual cast members to learn their lines-“be sure of the text, it is not acceptable for us to hear the prompt over the dialog.” Actors were also advised to “speak with the comprehension that comes from understanding”, especially as a conscious effort had been made to pick excerpts with soliloquies in them. The importance of understanding and appreciating differences in pace, power and pitch were also highlighted. It was pointed out that blank verse, which the playwright largely employs in his work, must be spoken and not recited. Awards: Best Novice Girl’s School-Gateway College Dehiwala Best Stagecraft-Ladies College Best Supporting Actress: Amaya Fernando, Visakha Vidyalaya Best Actress (joint) Shanee Algama and Petruccio (Ladies College) Finalists: Ladies College Visakha Vidyalaya Bishop's College Devi Balika Vidyalaya