Over 100 students from the Lower School joined forces to present an outstandingly creative and powerful production of Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers on May 19, 20 and 21.

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The deeply moving story of two twin brothers, separated at birth and raised in very different circumstances in 1960s Liverpool, was told with beautiful clarity and honesty by a talented cast of girls from Years 7, 8 and 9.

Nikita Bedi and Anna Rayson were superb as the brothers Mickey and Eddie, capturing both the non-stop fidgety mannerisms of seven-year boys and the adolescent self-consciousness of teenagers. Aisling Flaherty played Mrs Johnstone, the put-upon working class mother of the boys, with splendid confidence and integrity, while Chloe Munro was brilliantly uptight as the anxious, well-to-do Mrs Lyons. Lily Lazarus gave a terrific performance as Linda, the girlfriend who grows up alongside the two boys, and becomes embroiled in their tragedy.

There were so many beautifully choreographed moments from the ‘multi-roleing’ chorus, who portrayed milkmen, doctors, removal men, gangs of street kids, pupils at two very different secondary schools, bailiffs and ominous narrator figures. The clever split-level set of terraced council houses allowed the cast to flow on and off the stage through multiple doorways, which meant that the action was seamless and fast-paced.

Congratulations to the cast and crew, and to Miss Lee, Mrs Finn, Mr Shaw, Mr Jordan and Mr Moore for staging such a challenging and thought-provoking piece of theatre.