The Performing Arts Department has showcased a dynamic series of shows and productions over the past few months, highlighting the talent, dedication, and creativity of our students.
Audiences from the local area attended the Rose Theatre to witness an array of impressive performances, spanning concerts, contemporary performance work, and full-scale theatrical productions.
Follow the timeline below to find out more!
December saw the incredible Christmas Pops! Concert and Christmas Dance Showcase.
Christmas Pops! – Tuesday 16th December
The College welcomed the holiday season with the annual Christmas Pops! Concert. This joyous event brought together students and staff to celebrate through a variety of musical performances, fostering a wonderful festive spirit for all in attendance.
Christmas Dance Showcase – Thursday 18th December
Our first-year dancers presented an evening of contemporary performance, marking the culmination of their initial term. The showcase highlighted their development in quartet work and their exploration of diverse choreographic styles.
February had students celebrating an outstanding achievement after securing second place at the prestigious Dance Live competition held at the Portsmouth Guildhall. In addition to Dance Live, Musical Theatre students astounded audiences by performing the West End musical, Hadestown.
Dance Live – Thursday 10th February
Dance Live is a large-scale performance competition that brings schools and colleges together to create and stage original dance productions in professional theatre venues. Combining choreography, technical theatre and creative storytelling, students work as full production teams – including performers and lighting technicians.
Musical Theatre Subject Leader and ED&I Coordinator, Lisa Fernandez-Adams, said:
“I am incredibly proud of every single student involved. They worked together brilliantly and performed with real skill and maturity. They represented Barton fantastically both on and off the stage.”
Hadestown – Wednesday 25th – Saturday 28th February
Hadestown deals with mature, complex, and emotionally demanding themes. It was wonderful to see students handle the show’s sophisticated themes and complexities with such grace and brilliance, showcasing complex characters, challenging vocals and challenging choreography.
March hosted an array of performances including:
- Mark Armstrong Barton Big Band Concert
- Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream
- Unseen Spaces: A Pop Performance
- Music and Film: Barton Peveril Session Orchestra & Winchester Youth Orchestra
Barton Big Band – Tuesday 3rd March
The Barton Big Band welcomed world-renowned jazz trumpeter and NYJO (National Youth Jazz Orchestra) Artistic Director, Mark Armstrong, for a special performance at Barton Peveril. The evening also featured brilliant performances from the College’s smaller jazz ensembles.
Macbeth – Thursday 12th – Friday 13th March
The production adopted a distinctive 1920s ‘Peaky Blinders’ theme, which formulated a unique setting for the classic tale. The student cast successfully brought the performance to life by utilising the Stanislavski method to create iconic characters, capturing the play’s themes of tragedy, tension, and turmoil.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Thursday 12th – Friday 13th March
Students staged a captivating production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, transporting the audience to a unique world where a 1990s Athenian Casino met a vibrant 90s rave scene. The play explored themes of turmoil and mistaken identity, as characters like Hermia and Lysander navigated a forest ruled by feuding fairies and bumbling actors. The performance successfully captured the frenetic energy and dreamlike chaos of Shakespeare’s comedy.
Unseen Spaces: A Pop Performance – Thursday 19th March
The Year 2 Popular Music Performance students delivered an unforgettable final concert, presenting a diverse and dynamic selection of songs inspired by the theme of “environment.” Through creative arrangements and powerful performances, the show explored ideas of nature, society, and the world around us.
Music and Film: Barton Peveril Session Orchestra & Winchester Youth Orchestra – Wednesday 25th March
An exciting collaboration between the Barton Peveril Session Orchestra and the Winchester Youth Orchestra celebrated the music of the movies, from westerns to dinosaurs and superheroes. Audiences enjoyed an immersive experience as iconic film clips were brought to life through live performances by the talented student musicians.
The Performing Arts Department continues to offer students enriching experiences through productions, showcases and collaborations, with more exciting performances still to come later this academic year.