As part of the Drama GCSE and A-level courses, we took pupils from Y10-12 on a theatre trip to The Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester to see a performance and take part in a workshop based on the play ‘Mother Courage and her children’ by Bertolt Brecht.
It is a sharp new version of Brecht’s universally celebrated classic by Anna Jordan, which sees Julie Hesmondhalgh in the iconic title role.
‘War rages over decades, but it’s business as usual for Mother Courage. She roams the grid from one army camp to another, her ragtag offspring in tow. Boots, beer, drugs, guns – anything a soldier desires can be bought off the back of Mother Courage’s cart. She’s determined to turn conflict into capital. But what will it cost her?’
The morning workshop provided an insight into the process of bringing this production to the stage and pupils got to meet members of the creative team and discuss elements of the play and its production. The girls had the opportunity to handle some of the props from other productions when looking at makeup including prosthetic ears, noses and tongues! The makeup artist demonstrated how they create the look of an acid burn on the arm (used in this production) and then the girls had the opportunity to apply makeup to look like wounds. It was thoroughly interesting and interactive and it really set the scene for the production, which was inspiring and challenging in equal measure.