French theatre brings language to life
A scary play which descends into farce and is all in French has helped some of our students to get to grips with another language.
La Maison Hantée is aimed at teenagers who are learning French and is billed as a scary production which ends-up being 'really funny' as the actors break out of character when things go wrong.
It was performed by two French actors as part of Onatti Productions which organises live, accessible theatre in different modern languages to be performed in schools around the country.
“Having a theatre performance in school means all our students in Year 9 and Year 11 have the opportunity to see a modern foreign language in action. They were able to follow the play and learn a lot about the language being used,” said French teacher Mrs Stokes.
“Students were invited to take part in some of the scenes so it immerses them in the play and the language, which is really beneficial for them,” she added.
Actors within the theatre group are trained to use clear, slow delivery of dialogue and to use mime to ensure all the students can follow the play. Every performance is accompanied by worksheets which provide a synopsis and useful words and phrases.