Students take on Ludi Scaenici Latin drama contest

On 26 May, 7 students in Years 8 and 9 competed in the annual Ludi Scaenici Latin drama contest at the Perse School. This contest, which has been running for over 40 years, requires the cast to perform an original play in Latin, with consideration given to the clarity and accuracy of their pronunciation and the quality and expressiveness of their acting.

This year, our plot revolved around a cunning plan to frame a character for murder; it was set in Pompeii and following the characters the students have got to know in our Latin course. The cast worked very hard to learn their lines and devise the performance in just a few weeks. On the day, the girls performed in front of three other local schools, their teachers and a panel of judges; an extremely brave feat, especially given the small cast size!

While this year the prize was awarded to St John’s school’s excellent production, the judges highly praised St Mary’s performance, particularly commenting on Samskriti and Tuppence's scenes as Clemens and Grumio, and admiring the cunning portrayal of Clemens and Grumio's obliviousness to the plan to frame him! The girls performed with excellent diction, accurate pronunciation and great enthusiasm, and should be extremely proud of themselves for taking part in the competition.

Find out more about Latin at St Mary’s here.