The MCM Drama Award can be granted to a boy applying for an Orwell Award who is passionate about the theatre arts, with the personality to adapt successfully to the life of a boarding community.
The award is not only open to actors and aspiring directors, but for any boy who feels drawn to work in any aspect of the theatre and gain more experience. There has been a steady stream of actors, playwrights, directors and technicians from the school who have gone on to make significant contributions to the artistic life of the country, from Oscar winners to top stage designers and comedians.
Eton was everything I expected and more. It was a bit of a whirlwind at first, meeting new people and getting used to a new system, but I loved every second of it; everybody was extremely friendly and Eton soon felt like a home from home.
Ben, MCM Drama Award recipient
Unlike previous scholarship programmes, the MCM Drama Award appreciates that academic achievement may sometimes have been held back by personal circumstance. As a result, applicants will be assessed both on academic potential and against specific criteria such as if a boy has refugee status or is a Looked After Child, if a boy is in the first generation of his family to go to university, if he is in receipt of the Pupil Premium or if he currently attends a school Ofsted has identified as ‘requiring improvement’ or in ‘special measures’.
The MCM Drama Award is named after Michael Meredith’s house. Michael is one of the pioneers of Eton drama who helped to make the theatre a creative art at Eton.
MCM Drama Award holders will also be willing to contribute to drama at Eton in several ways: auditioning for all School Plays, and for his House Play where appropriate; writing for the School Play Festival or directing and producing an Independent Play; joining the Double-Edge project in Edinburgh in the summer of B Block (Year 13); as an active member of the Theatre Society; writing Chronicle reviews for the Drama Archive in College Library. He will also take theatre studies at AS and A2, but this is not a requirement.
Assessment
All boys will have an interview with the Director of Drama/Head of Theatre Studies.
Actors will be asked to perform two pieces at interview. Each piece should last between 2-4 minutes. One will be from Elizabethan or Jacobean Drama. The other can be from any other period, but should form a contrast to the first piece.
Technicians should be willing to make a presentation of their skill, which might involve a lighting, sound or set design in a particular play, which they must specify before interview.
All candidates will be asked to select a play (to be specified before interview) and discuss their ideas for staging the piece. Some comment on period, design, costume, stage configuration and casting ideas will be expected along with their own interpretation.
A portfolio of their theatre involvement would be a useful aid at interview.
This award is designed to give experience to young theatre artists by welcoming them into our drama community and using the opportunities within the theatre season to explore and develop their skills.
Scott Handy, Director of Drama
Those wishing to be considered for the award should apply through the normal Orwell Award application process, completing the MCM Drama Award section as part of their application.
Read more about the MCM Drama Award.
For further information, please contact the Admissions Office.
