Three Sisters Play - London Trip
‘Three Sisters: A new play by Inua Ellams after Chekhov’
Last term the drama department invited Sixth Form Drama and English Literature students to attend a new interpretation of Chekhov’s classic play ‘Three Sisters’ at The National Theatre in London. Rather than the original mid-19th century Russia setting, Ellams transposed the play to reveal the conflict and fears experienced in Nigeria in the late 1960s as the country entered the Biafran Civil War. The production played to a full house and delivered energetic, thought-provoking performances from all.
Seeing this play was a phenomenal experience. The set was simple, but still created a realistic and interesting setting that captured the style of the sixties while also maintaining the rural feeling of the African countryside. When put on a revolve, the set could be changed from showing the façade of a house to showing its interior, which allowed a fast and efficient change of setting. The African spirit was not only brought to life by talented actors, but also by a character that appeared only four times during the whole play – a woman singing in an African language, whose performance really immersed the audience even deeper into the action on stage. As an exchange student, getting to see such an amazing play with talented actors, stunning set and costume design and an interesting plot in the National Theatre, has really been an experience I will forever be grateful for. Sophie Gehritz Year 12