Performing Arts at The Swanage School

Drama and music are both taught throughout Key Stage 3 and can be taken as GCSEs. We have a well equipped music room and a fantastic studio space for drama rehearsals. 

Musical Theatre Annual Production

Our annual show at The Mowlem has become legendary - the talk of the town, attracting not only parents but many local residents and tourists too!

A huge number of students are involved each year in this major undertaking. They rehearse hard, gain new skills, work as a team and see their confidence soar as they step on stage to sing, dance and act their way to a standing ovation. Yet more students act as backstage crew on music, lighting, props and set design. You can view images from our shows and backstage antics in our Performing Arts Gallery.

For our 2024 production of Matilda the Musical, almost 500 tickets were sold in the first weekend alone, making it our fastest selling show!

National Connections

National Connections is an initiative run by the National Theatre that involves around 200 schools and youth theatres, giving young people a chance to perform one of ten new plays written by some of the UK's most exciting young playwrights. Each year, performances start at local theatres, move to regional theatres and, if judged the best performance of the selected play, a performance at the National Theatre itself! 

We have again been selected to take part in 2024, following our earlier productions of Dungeness by Chris Thompson, which students performed at The Mowlem Theatre in 2020, and Superglue, a play by Tim Crouch, performed at The Mowlem and The Lighthouse Theatre in Poole.