On Tuesday 7 October, fourteen members of the GCSE Drama group took part in the Shakespeare Schools Festival, performing an abridged version of "The Tempest" to a full house at the Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh. The festival is non competitive and celebrated all over the United Kingdom, with usually four schools performing shortened Shakespeare in one venue over one evening. Similar evenings are taking place all this week. Our cast gave a minimalist, pared down Brechtian version of Shakespeare's last play (as is generally assumed). They garnered some laughter from the comedy of the piece and showed good concentration skills in what turned out to be a long, testing but rewarding day working in a professional theatre. Matt Potter took the onerous lead role of Prospero, with a vivacious Charlotte Appleyard as Miranda, his daughter. The monster Caliban was realised by Oscar Erikson, and there were nice comic cameos from Tamsin Birch and Campbell Findlay.