Category: Sixth Form News
We joined students in Seckford Theatre this week for our second round of character/student interviews for this year’s Sixth Form production, The Trial.
Rehearsing a particularly challenging scene in terms of movement and tone, it was an ideal opportunity to see how the play is progressing, and how our students feel about their characters, ahead of performances on Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 November.
Tickets are still available, so be sure to book via the following link: ticketsource.co.uk/woodbridge-school-drama.
In the meantime, let’s learn a little more about Year 12’s Ed, and Year 13’s Isaac and Phoebe R in their interviews below.
Year 12’s Ed – playing Guard 2 and Huld
“I play Guard 2 as well as Huld in the play, he’s Joseph K’s lawyer – and quite a character, in himself and to play! He’s serious and growly, which in itself is a challenge, the voice has to be consistent and in character obviously, so that’s going to take focus and concentration to ensure that it comes across throughout the performance; particularly as there’s also a lot of emotion to convey too.
Huld’s also quite a frightening character, in terms of how others in the play feel about him, he’s bold and forceful – but great fun to play. The Guard role requires something quite different in terms of tone of voice and stage presence; in contrast to Huld he’s quieter and speaks in a long and low voice. I’m really enjoying rehearsals, excited about performing, I’ve got some funny lines too and those are always great fun to deliver, particularly when the audience engages or responds.”
Year 13’s Isaac – playing Block
“Block, my character, is a very intense person. He has a lot of similarities to Joseph K in the play, who’s the protagonist. He’s a version of Joseph K further down the line, and further through his own trial process – Block’s been in that process for years and years. I’d say he’s frustrated and ground down by it all, he has very little information about his trial and so he’s become almost animalistic and insane about it all; he’s a really interesting character to play.
Projecting his low and nasally voice is a challenge, it’s got to be consistent. It is so easy to slip out of character when you increase the volume of your voice for example, so I’m being careful to focus on that. I enjoy the physical part of this character too, he moves like an animal, bounding across the stage – it’s not easy, but it’s so interesting.”
Year 13’s Phoebe – playing Leni
“Leni is completely outrageous! She loves being desired and loves desiring – and also loves having someone wrapped around her little finger, namely Joseph K. Vocally she’s very dreamy, a tone of voice that enables her to maintain her power, which she thoroughly enjoys using and holding over others in the play.
I’m so excited about performing, I do get nerves but I shake them out before I step on stage. This in itself is interesting in relation to my character, as Leni is quite still, not nervous at all; so I’ve got to be calm and prepared to be able to play her”.
Throughout the first half of term we’ve received news of a number of personal achievements for our students, including sporting success, acting, dancing, sailing and writing.
Year 13’s Luke Completes his First Half Marathon
Taking on the Larking Gowen Ipswich Half Marathon, marked Luke’s first ever attempt at this distance; having previously completed many local 10K races. A significant step up, he rose to the challenge brilliantly finishing the race in 2 hours and 5 minutes – a fantastic achievement for a first half marathon. The experience hasn’t deterred him — in fact, he’s already looking forward to taking on another one soon.
Year 8’s Kitty’s Part in Borley Rectory: The Awakening
Borley Rectory: The Awakening premiers on 13 October, featuring Kitty, who appears opposite well-known names including Julian Glover (James Bond; Indiana Jones; Star Wars) and Patsy Kensit. Wishing Kitty and everyone else involved in the film, the very best of luck as it is released to audiences.
Year 7’s Bronte Dances her Way to Success
Having competed in the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) qualifiers, taking 2nd place in Latin, 5th place in Ballroom and going through to the Grand Finals in November, Year 7’s Bronte has also recently competed in the European Cup taking two British Open titles for Latin Sequence dancing, going through to the Championships. These achievements are fantastic, and we look forward to hearing more about her dancing achievements.
Year 10’s George Became Inland Sailing Champion
Sailing at Queen Mary Reservoir in the UK Cadet Class, Year 10’s George has recently become the Inland Sailing Champion. Racing took place over two days against a fleet of 51 boats from across the country. Enjoying windy conditions and winning all three races, his success is on the back of a busy summer of sailing when he competed as part of the GBR team at Lake Lipno in Czechia. George is now looking forward to team selection for Lake Garda in 2026.
Literary Success for Year 11’s Ambrose
Year 11’s Ambrose has been celebrating having his writing published in the Woodbridge and Melton Society newsletter. Sharing details of his skating experiences in Woodbridge, it’s been a fantastic first journalistic enterprise and we’re certain Ambrose will go on to celebrate more.
Last week, Sixth Form Drama students had the pleasure of taking part in a workshop run by the amazing Frantic Assembly. Sharing her thoughts and experience of the day, read our report from Year 13’s Georgia.
“Our external facilitator Steve instantly created an energetic yet comforting atmosphere for us to embrace. He provided us with various physical activities that would influence our practical pieces that we are soon to embark on.
One of my favourites was ‘family portrait’ in which a group of us would create a sequence of six images around a row of chairs, each position capturing a different freeze frame. This fast-paced exercise reduced overthinking and made some excellent stories within the pictures.
Overall, this workshop pushed our imagination skills and encouraged us to adapt to new challenges quickly.
Thank you to the Drama department for this wonderful opportunity and we cannot wait for more to come. “
It has been a busy start to term with numerous Rugby fixtures being played, including our Senior XV playing Ipswich High School, and our U16s playing Framlingham. Our report below shares news of those matches and our players.
Woodbridge Senior XV vs Ipswich High School
Earlier this week the Senior 1st XV played against Ipswich High school.
Our 1st XV dominated the first half of the game running in some fantastic tries including a great hard running line by Year 11’s Charlie in the midfield, who scored under the posts and a first half hat-trick by Year 12’s Arthur on the wing.
The second half was an end-to-end affair with lots of substitutions and students playing in different positions; with new combinations on the Woodbridge side. Ipswich tested our defence with more possession and a few penalties led to us conceding twice. However, the team bounced back and finished strong to see out the game with a comfortable victory and total of ten tries, including a brace from Prop Forward, Year 13’s George.
A great start to the season and well done to all involved!
Woodbridge U16 vs Framlingham
The U16s had their first fixture of the season, two weeks back away to Framlingham.
We started the game strong going up 7-0 after only a few minutes. The teams were very evenly balanced with there only being one score between the sides for the majority of the game.
We dominated field position throughout, however we struggled to convert as often as needed when in the opposition 22.
Some fantastic individual performances with demonstrations of leadership from captain, Year 11’s Liam and Player of the Match award going to Year 11’s Oli M who showed great game management and awareness in hinge moments.
The U16s narrowly missed out, losing 34-22. A great performance and shame to miss out on the result on the day.
Well done to all who played a part!
Moving straight into County rounds for the National Schools’ Netball competition was a new format this year for Suffolk Schools. All three age groups played schools from North, South and West Suffolk to compete for the top two places to represent the County at the East Region tournament in February. Our reports are from Mrs Johnson and Miss Sanders.
Woodbridge U14s
The U14s put on an excellent display on Monday afternoon at Rushmere. The sun was shining, and it was like a summer’s day – some would say, it was too hot for Netball! As there were 13 schools competing, teams were split into two pools, so the girls knew we had to give everything if we were in with a chance of getting to Regionals.
We started the competition positively and put up a strong performance against locals, Farlingaye and came away with an 11–4 win in our first match. After a short break, we then played five games in a row, which was tiring and didn’t give us much breathing space between each one.
Next were Finborough – a tough team, who we had to try and beat. It was all even until the last few seconds of the game, when we managed to turn their centre pass over and score, going ahead by one goal. Luckily the final whistle went, and we came away 10–9 winners.
Ipswich High were next, and we had not beaten this team yet this year, so knew they were strong. The girls fought so hard and didn’t give up. Our shooting was consistent, along with our court play and defending out of our skins, to try and turn the ball over. Again, another match where it was all even and we managed to score off our centre and come away with the win. We were ecstatic at the 8-7 score! The girls were on a high and even more up for getting through as they were proving to themselves, they could do it!
Our next two matches were a lot easier, so less pressure, although we needed to score as many goals as we could as every goal mattered, in case there was a draw. We put up good performances against both County Upper and Hartismere, resulting in 13-2 and 10-0 wins.
It was all to play for in our last match against Fram. It was another match where the play was even, both teams scoring off their centre passes, which is tournament play as any missed goal can result in a team going behind by two goals. Just as the half time whistle went, we scored a penalty to take us one ahead, but the umpire disallowed it (not sure why!), so we went into the second half with a fight on our hands. F ram took the lead and unfortunately, the final whistle went, resulting in 8-7 loss. Our heads dropped a little, but the team were so proud of what they had achieved and were looking forward to seeing where we can in our pool.
Coming 2nd in our pool, we faced a super slick and amazing RHS team, who played faultlessly. Tiredness was kicking in and we couldn’t prevent them from their super play. After losing, we knew that we could not be in the top two teams, but we had a 3rd/ 4th match to play, so found that last bit of energy in our match against Ipswich School.
Unfortunately, we did not have enough energy in our tanks as we had used it during the afternoon, but we still continued to play our hearts out and with determination and were drawing at half time. We struggled to make it to the last hurdle and Ipswich went ahead by four goals, so out of our reach in the last seven minutes of the match.
A superb effort by all and coming 4th overall is an excellent achievement! Woodbridge played exceptionally well and should be proud of what they achieved together, as myself and Mrs Johnson were so proud of you all! Well done to our team, Year 9’s India J (Captain), Alexandra, Imogen M, Imarah, Sienna, Mariella, India B and Year 8’s Martha, Grace and Matilda.
Woodbridge U16s
An excellent afternoon of netball was had by the U16s where every single player worked their socks off and gave 100%.
Drawn in two pools with 11 other schools competing we started with a close game versus Farlingaye and edged ahead to win 16-13 with some amazing shooting from Izzy, Amelie and Georgia. The defensive team of Eve, Pip and Cleo performed really well in our game versus Stowmarket for us to take our second victory 8-3.
Next up was RHS and our dominance in the centre court from Eva, Georgia, Frankie, Annie and Felicity enabled us to win a tight game 11-9. We then had Culford, another pool favourite, but after going behind we came back to win 9-7 with some cool, calm and collected play from the whole squad.
We then took on Hartismere after a long break but dominated and were able to up our goal difference winning 20-3.
Having won our pool, we then faced Ipswich High in the semi-finals. Having narrowly beaten them in a recent friendly match, we knew they were going to be tough opposition but took to the court with everything to play for – a place at the Regional Finals!
It was so close, going from end to end with every centre pass and each team scoring. In a seven minute each way game every goal and turnover counts; unfortunately, IHS gained a turnover and capitalised. They pulled two ahead and although we never gave up that advantage was never lost, and we went down 8-10.
Disappointed doesn’t even explain it as the girls had given everything – we just didn’t have that last bit of luck on our side which is always needed in tournament play.
The girls were an absolute credit to the School and went on to beat Culford 14-8 in the 3rd/4th place playoff. They played for pride and were fantastic, each and every one of them and we couldn’t be prouder of the way they played or conducted themselves. Well done to our team, Year 11’s Georgia C, Frankie, Annie, Izzy H, Felicity, Amelie, Eva P, Cleo, Eve S, and Phillipa.
Woodbridge U19s
With a slightly different format to the U16s, the U19s found themselves in a pool of eight teams, therefore the afternoon was a round-robin competition with again, the top two going to Regionals.
The team were up for it, (even though our warming up was a little lacklustre!) but not looking forward to facing Ipswich in our first match. The girls knew this would be a tough match, although we did beat them in a full game at the end of last season, so had an idea of their tactics and specific players’ strengths and weaknesses.
We unfortunately were slow to get out of the blocks, so allowed the opposition to take control and win 10-3. With new combinations too, it took us a while to get regrouped and play as a team who meant business, but we were ready for our next match against Farlingaye.
Drawing at half time, we were in it, until we unfortunately missed a goal, therefore enabling Farlingaye to go ahead by two goals. With only a minute to go, we couldn’t fight back, so narrowly lost by two.
With two matches down and five to go with Finborough next, the team knew this would not be an easy match. Again, we had beaten them in a full game last season, but we feel the pressure more in tournament play. Another match where it was all even at half time, but let the pressure get to us, plus the on court noise from the opposition and our heads went down, therefore enabling them to take control and the lead. A 16-7 loss. Although we knew we were no longer in contention for 1st or 2nd place, we still wanted to prove to ourselves that we could come 3rd or even 4th, so kept on fighting in the last four games.
What a difference these matches were! Various combinations of shooters, defenders and centre court players proved we were a versatile team and everyone gave their all. We dominated St Jo’s resulting in an 11-6 win, Fram were next and again, we played brilliantly and came away with a 14-5 win.
With a positive attitude and a drive to win the last two games, we put 100% in and played with tenacity and determination. Culford were next up and from the starting whistle, we played some super Netball and defended out of our skins. This performance resulted in a 12–7 win.
Last up, it was RHS. Although we felt a little physically and mentally drained, a win was what the team were after. Dominating from the starting whistle and not giving up until the final whistle, we were again successful and won 13-3.
Well done to all the girls – a superb squad effort, even though we took a lot longer to warm up than other teams. Coming 4th overall was another positive result and one we were super pleased with! Our team comprised Year 13’s Lara (Captain), Georgia P, Georgia G, Issy C, Phoebe D, Yr 12’s Lyrah, Millie, Scarlett, Aurelia and Bea.
Thank you to Mrs Johnson, Mrs Pilkington and Mrs Pineo for all their help and support, but especially giving up their time to be with the tournament teams. It was much appreciated by Miss Sanders (who was stepping in for Mrs Gray).
Last week Year 10 players in the U15A and U15B teams took on the strong teams from Norwich High School for Girls.
The U15A team dominated the start of the match with Tabby scoring early to give us the lead. This gave Woodbridge confidence to move the ball around with creativity and flare. Just before half time, an improvised penalty corner was scored by Eirann to double the lead.
The second half saw a goal for each team, with Tabby scoring her second to secure the win for Woodbridge. Ella B was awarded Player of the Match for her outstanding performance in defence.
The U15B team fought out a gutsy draw, especially fighting hard to defend a penalty corner against them close to the end of the game. Well done to Year 9’s Imarah, Kirsty and Imogen M who played up, Imogen also helping to set up the goal for Year 10’s Imogen S. Imogen S was also awarded joint Player of the Match, alongside Imogen M.
Woodbridge Senior 3rd vs Norwich High
Earlier this week the Senior 3rd team also played against Norwich High School for Girls. This match was end-to-end with both goalkeepers playing outstanding to keep their teams in the game. The first half ended goalless with good performances being put in for Woodbridge by Year 11’s Honor and Year 12’s Valentina.
Ten minutes into the second half the opposition scored, somewhat against the run of play. Not to be deterred, Woodbridge pushed forward and was duly rewarded with a penalty corner which Year 11, Sophie K struck well from the top of the D to convert this chance. The game ended in a well-battled draw. Year 12’s India E was given Player of the Match alongside GK super star Year 12’s Poppy H-B.
Our Senior Hockey players are making us very proud in how they are playing, representing the School and attending extra-curricular practices in huge numbers. An excellent example is being set to the younger years who are following suit with excellent attitude, play and using every opportunity to practise and hone their skills and team play. Well done to all!
We recently met with cast members from this year’s Sixth Form Production, The Trial; based on Franz Kafka’s novel and adapted by Steven Berkoff, our students will share the story of Joseph K, who has been arrested and is awaiting trial – but doesn’t know why. Sinking deeper and deeper, he attempts to discover what is behind his situation.
Joining students mid-rehearsal with Mr Williams, it was great to speak to Year 13’s Fergus and Georgia, as well as Year 12’s Sam L, about their characters and the likely challenges ahead as they prepare for two performances which take place on Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 November.
Year 13’s Fergus, playing Joseph K
“I’m playing Joseph K. who is like an everyman. As the central protagonist, one of the challenges is portraying the many different thoughts and voices in K’s consciousness; he’s battling in his own mind with the fact that he hasn’t’ really done anything wrong, or at least he doesn’t think he has. This isn’t helped by the fact that he’s a man that never really seems to make things happen, he tries but never succeeds. He’s a really interesting character to play because he’s very different to the characters I’ve played in the past, because he’s very he’s very reserved, holds back and he’s not a man of action. In contrast I usually play energetic and outgoing characters, so that’s definitely going to be one of the biggest challenges for me. There are lots of lines that I need to ensure are delivered in a controlled way, subtly, softly, whereas ordinarily I’m used to exaggerating and giving energy to the characters I play.”
Year 13’s Georgia
“I play the part of the Laundress in the play, she’s the court bailiff’s wife and she’s a very seductive and flirtatious woman! She’s seductive and intentional, so that in itself is a challenge, I’ve not played this kind of character before. I’ve nothing really to compare her too in terms of characters I’ve played before, which means although she’s a challenge, it’s enjoyable as it means I get to create her on stage in some ways. However, it can feel a little awkward and uncomfortable, so I’ve got to learn to overcome that as her character develops – the way she walks, talks and moves, they’re all very dreamlike and exaggerated, she’s quite a complex character to play.”
Year 12’s Sam, playing Acolyte and the Bailiff
“Playing the Bailiff is great, he’s this incredibly rushed, hot-tempered character and I really enjoy playing him. The most recent scene I’ve rehearsed sees his wife being carried off by someone else and he’s anxiously searching for he, rushing all over the place – he also speaks very quickly! As one of a few cameo characters, he’s also a working man, and someone I and the audience can relate to easily as well, so there are lots of dimensions to him that make him a joy to play. The biggest challenge for me so far is the accents, my characters have different accents so I have to not only practice and perfect each of them – but make sure I don’t mix them up on stage! There are certain lines in any accent that are easy to recite, but maintaining that accent through every word spoken – that’s the real challenge, but I’m enjoying it.”
Be sure to book your tickets available from ticketsource.co.uk/woodbridge-school-drama.
Another week of fantastic Hockey! Our match reports below hold details of teams, matches and players.
Woodbridge 1st XI vs IHS
The 1st XI continued their good run of form with a convincing win against Ipswich High School. The team was determined not to let the home ground advantage count by making sure their ball pace was good and they kept the ball moving fast through the midfield. The focus for the game was to get the press exactly right and improve ball winning skills. This the team did brilliantly, and Ipswich High struggled to break through the zonal press. Woodbridge went ahead courtesy of a goal by Year 12’s Charlie after relentless pressure in the opening ten minutes. In the closing minutes of the first half a burst of speed on the ball by Charlie left the opposition stranded followed by a good ball into the D to Year 12’s Bea, who showed real strength on the ball to get a flick away and double the lead.
Woodbridge scored at regular intervals in the second half, being rewarded for their good defensive work and then focus to try maintain the ball by moving it around comfortably, also practising deep and midfield transfers. Year 11’s Rosa was influential up the right flank, being available to continue an attack time after time and feeding the forwards. Year 13’s Nancy worked tirelessly in the press and was duly rewarded with a brace of goals, one finishing off the best counterattack which started in front of our own goal. Year 11’s Eve and Year 13’s Georgia scored a goal each, before Bea and Charlie each got a second. Rosa was voted as Team Player of the Match.
A great match to play and win, before a small break in matches, as a number of players in the team embark on the County Netball Tournament.
Woodbridge 3rd XI vs Fram College
The 3rd XI played their first match of the season, against a big squad of Fram College. With the advantage of bringing on lots of fresh legs, Fram just pipped us by one goal but it was a good, tough match, in front of a rowdy Fram College crowd. Well done to our girls for their resilience in tough conditions. Year 11’s Felicity and Romilly were our goal scorers on the day.
Midweek it was our Junior teams taking to the pitch for matches against Fram College and Ipswich High School.
Woodbridge Junior 1st vs Fram U13A
The Junior 1st team started in style in their match against Fram U13A, stunning the home side in the opening minute. The perfect press, and pressure from vice-captain Martha (Year 8) saw her win the ball off a doubtful defender, get herself into the D and calmly push the ball past the goalie. A great start!
Woodbridge continued to dominate the first half but just could not get the finishing touch in the attacking D. At the other end Year 8 GK Najma and defenders, Year 8’s Juno and Year 7’s Lily dealt with long ball counterattack Hockey. But the hard work had to be done to keep Fram at bay and not let them build confidence. Finally, Year 7’s Sophia played a classy reverse sweep into the goal, on the rebound, to give Woodbridge a cushion going into half time. The team knew they would need to kill the game by getting another goal, or Fram would keep believing they can get back into the game.
A stronger, faster, and slicker Fram team came out in the second half, but Woodbridge kept putting on the physical and mental effort to not concede! Year 8’s Matilda and Chloe and Year 7’s Issy and Darcey ran their socks off in midfield to not give an inch! When Fram did break through the trusty trio at the back did their job again! Year 8’s Juno was awarded Player of the Match for her great game tackling, intercepting and finding the gaps with passes to her midfield and forwards. Well done to the team who are playing some very nice hockey and are very entertaining to watch!
Woodbridge Junior 2 vs Fram College U13B
The Junior 2s had an equally great start in their match against Fram College’s U13Bs. Year 8 Captain, Grace, scored in the opening minutes and nearly had a second soon after. This time she was denied but it did not stop Grace from becoming the day’s ‘Hattrick Hero’, scoring twice more in the half.
In the second half, Woodridge peppered the opposition goal, but were denied by good goalkeeping, or good aiming by us to hit the GK. Year 7’s Coco put an end to this with a fantastic deflection in front of the goalie’s pads, to seal the big win for the Junior 2s. Year 7’s Chloe Y was voted Player of the Match.
Woodbridge Junior 5 vs IHS
The Junior 5s started their season with a win against Ipswich High School. A goal in each half by Year 7’s Sophie M and Year 8’s Ellie D secured the win, while Year 8’s GK Kitty stepped in well to keep the clean sheet. Well done to this team and especially players who played their first match for the School.
Woodbridge Junior 6 vs IHS
The Junior 6s came close but had to settle for a draw in their opening match. Each team deserved their goal and to share the honours, Year 7’s Lola D scoring for Woodbridge. Year 8’s Iyla was player of the match.
Both these team look forward to testing themselves against strong team of Norwich School next week.
Smiles, scoring, spirit, saves, support for each other and 100% effort have been seen again this week it’s clearly helping our teams deliver their best. Keep it up, girls. Well done so far.
Year 10 travelled to London on Wednesday to watch The Merry Wives of Windsor at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre as part of their English studies. Enjoying the full cultural experience, the students stood in the Yard, immersed in the raucous comedy of the play. Ahead of their study of Shakespeare at GCSE, they explored the stagecraft, different versions of love and Shakespeare’s joyous presentation of strong and clever women. Read Year 10’s Bay’s review below.
Year 10’s Bay
Visiting the Globe Theatre was a unique and immersive experience.
The open-air design and historical setting made me feel like I had stepped back in time to Shakespeare’s era. The atmosphere was lively, with the audience standing close to the stage, which created an intimate connection between the actors and the crowd.
The Merry Wives of Windsor was entertaining and full of humour; the actors brought the characters to life with great energy and comedic timing, making the story of love and mischief easy to follow and enjoy. The costumes and props were authentic and added to the overall charm of the play.
Overall, watching a Shakespeare play at the Globe was a memorable experience that combined history, culture, and entertainment perfectly. The whole year group had a great time!
Last week our Drama Scholarship and Enrichment students watched a recording of the production House of Bernarda Alba. Rebecca Frecknall made her directorial debut at the National Theatre with Alice Birch’s radical version of Federico García Lorca’s modern masterpiece, and our students got to enjoy this enriching experience, with a post-performance discussion. Year 10’s Annabelle shares here experience in her review.
Annabelle, Year 10 – Review of ‘House of Bernarda Alba’
The performance of House of Bernarda Alba was so powerful, it filled us a variety of different emotions.
The set onstage was so clever, at the beginning there is a beautiful light that casts the shadows of each character in their separate rooms. The technical elements really immersed us in the production. The costumes played an impressive part in showing us how the characters change throughout their journey, using contrasting colours.
The whole story takes place in just one house, which made everything feel claustrophobic, symbolising how the daughters of Bernarda Alba must feel. This was an amazing technique to bring us into their lives.
The absence of any other colour than a light teal in the house made it feel clinical and cold which reflects the story perfectly. Even the little moments we shared with each character felt so big.
It was a gift to experience such a beautiful and stunning performance.