A magical piece of theatre was created by pupils from Cedar House School at The Old Laundry Theatre in Bowness on Windermere in November as part of the Shakespeare Schools Festival.

Twelve pupils performed a thirty minute abridged version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream to a packed audience. It was a truly memorable evening with the entire Cedar House cast rising to the occasion. As well as the rapturous applause of the audience, the pupils were treated to a critical appraisal of their performance on stage by director William Donaldson.

Summarising both William’s comments and her own feelings about the Cedar House performance, Festival Director Lydia Lewison commented: “Your adapted script was wonderful - fresh, modern communicative and really, really funny. You kept the feeling of the original – its magic, naughtiness and warmth – and told the story. There were so many brilliant moments – Oberon’s asides to the audience, the banter between the lovers, downtrodden Puck and the final dance scene – that I remember clearly. Your use of sound and lighting was fantastic and really supported the performers without overshadowing them.”

Gillian Ridgway Head Teacher at Cedar House School said: “The performance was enthralling and was an enriching experience for all the pupils involved. We were all very proud of them.”