Drama

Class and Co-curricular Drama continue their busy year with Theatresports and The Rector’s Company (Shakespeare) both competing at the Super Eight Cultural Festival that was held recently and Shakespeare Nationals about to start. Junior Musical Theatre are working steadily towards their performances of excerpts from Big River in Term 4. An application has been submitted to Origin Theatrical in Australia for our 2026 PNBHS/PNGHS Senior Production and we hope to have an announcement soon! Level 3 Drama are rehearsing for their abridged version of Foreskin’s Lament which has two public performances early in Term 3.

Theatresports Super Eight

The Super Eight Cultural Festival took place at the Sir Howard Performing Arts Centre in Rotorua. The Theatresports team, accompanied by the chess team, travelled to the event on Wednesday, 14th May, and returned on the Friday afternoon. Although our Theatresports team did not secure a placement this year, the experience of competing and engaging in games with other talented Drama students was invaluable. The team comprised of Year 12 students: Campbell Mackintosh, Lachlan Hall, Kauri Mills, Karam Dhari, and Angus Taylor.

The Rector’s Company

On Thursday 14th May PNBHS Rector’s Company represented PNBHS at the Super Eight Cultural Festival hosted by Rotorua Boys’ High School. There were several presentations using scenes from Shakespeare, as well as a well-crafted devised piece from New Plymouth Boys’ High School.

For this event we chose to perform a scene from Romeo and Juliet, Act 1 Sc1, which is, or can be, somewhat bawdy, making the choice of a scout camp an unlikely setting for the play. Caidyn Caffell and Karam Dhari gave a strong performance as the toxically masculine Gregory and Sampson, supported by Nikhil Baine as the “spy tree” of the Capulets. With Campbell Mackintosh as Abraham, upping the ante with Benvolio and Tybalt (Henry Bovey) before a brief, but telling exchange of toasted and raw marshmallows. In our interpretation we brought into the light the overlooked love affair between Benvolio (James Rattray) and Romeo (Isaac Fox), which gave many comedic opportunities. Angus Taylor as The Prince and Tyler Thompson as Montague, gave us a real sense of mature authority.

The adjudicators thoroughly enjoyed the performance, and caught the many visual and clowning jokes, and chose to place us second, behind a well-deserved New Plymouth first.

On 29 May PNBHS Rector’s Company departed for the SGCNZ Victoria University of Wellington National Shakespeare Festival. Rector’s Company were selected as the representatives for the Manawatū/Whanganui/Rangitikei region at the Regional Festival in April this year. We will be presenting a scene from Henry IV part 1 that interprets Falstaff and his cronies as the less desirable elements of English cricket in the 1970s/80s. Henry Bovey (Falstaff), Isaac Fox (Hal), James Rattray (Poins), Jaden Durston (Francis), Karam Dhari (Gadshill), Caidyn Caffell (Peto) and Campbell Mackintosh (Bardolph), will present this comedic tour de force.

In addition, in association with PNBHS Māori Performing Arts, PNBHS Rector’s Company is rehearsing a production of Henry IV parts 1 and 2 title Hēnare Te Tuawha, the Reign of Henry IV and Rise of Henry V to be presented in Week 1 of Term 3, in four performances. This interpretation of the Henry IV is set in a land like Aotearoa, with a Māori King and Lords. Falstaff and the clientele of the Boar’s Head are whalers. There will be battles, kapa haka, mau rakau, and waiata.

Performance dates July 16th to July 19th in The Ian Colquhoun Memorial Hall at Palmerston North Boys’ High School.