On Thursday 12th May, Amelia (UIV) represented Calne at the Regional Final of the English-Speaking Union ‘Performing Shakespeare’ Competition, having won the school round earlier this year. Amelia’s monologue from Romeo and Juliet, in which Juliet awakes in the Capulet tomb, was so brilliant that she was judged the regional winner! She will now go on to compete at the National Finals at the Globe Theatre in June.

Amelia said about the event: “Taking part in the ESU Shakespeare competition so far has been a really enjoyable and informative experience. Before the performances started the other participants and I did a Shakespeare workshop together, which not only warmed us all up and taught us a great deal about some of Shakespeare's works, but also made us more familiar with each other. After the workshop and a few snacks, the performances started. My performance was definitely not as nerve-wracking as I had expected it to be and ended up being very enjoyable. Afterwards the judges gave us some valuable feedback and I am now very much looking forward to performing at the Globe Theatre for the finals.”

The judges were clearly extremely impressed with her confident performance and had the following to say: “We thought Amelia’s portrayal of Juliet was incredibly mature. She didn’t play safe with the characterisation, choosing to make Juliet pragmatic and inquisitive rather than girlie and flighty, which was really interesting. She made great use of the language and pace, and she played the ending of the speech with a depth that was engaging. She needs to keep all of this in her mind as she approaches the Grand Final.”

The English and Drama Departments would like to congratulate Amelia on a really outstanding victory and wish her all the best for the final; we can’t wait to see how she gets on!