This time of year is great for pupils in Year Six. SATS tests are finished, the focus is on moving to a new school and the children get to spend time rehearsing for their end of year production – and the “Class of 2018” at Sir Henry Fermor C of E Primary School in Crowborough, have really worked their socks off with What a Knight by Craig Hawes.
What A Knight is based, very loosely, on the tales of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table but, as those Knights have names like Sir Roundsound (Marino), Sir Cumference (Gabriel), Sir Loinsteak (Luca), Sir Render (Archie), Sir Curity (Barney) and Sir Veillance (Aayan) – the link to the original tale is somewhat tenuous!
The “wondering” minstrel, Lester Lugabout (Ollie), sets the scene for us, and he is followed by the full company of Knights, Squires and Courtiers singing The Castle Of Camelot. With carefully choreographed, and very well rehearsed, moves the number is very reminiscent of the opening “village scene” in most pantomimes.
Moving swiftly on, the Royal Family, Squires and Courtiers are busy preparing for the birthday celebrations for King Arthur (Francois). In this scene we meet more characters including the Princesses Alberta (Alannah), Alfreda (Evie), Almira (Robyn) and the very wayward Princess Alice (Eryn) – together with their fab-u-lous dress designers Colin Calvin and Keith Klein (Ethan and Jacob D.)
After another full company song and dance number, King Arthur Ain’t ‘Arf A Bad King!, the action then moves to the Castle Kitchen where Kitty Cobblers (Eleanor) is allowing the two guards, Scratch and Sniff (Eddie and Reece), to taste the food being prepared for the banquet.
Jolly Jake the (seriously depressed) Court Jester (Jacob S) and Watt Cobblers (Tommy) make an appearance and, in a well produced “flashback scene”, Watt explains how he got expelled from knight school, before lending his mother a “helping hand” to cook the all-important scones but, I wouldn’t eat them if I were you!
Kitty presents her son with a book, ‘How to be a Knight’, for a present while, on the other side of the stage, Princess Alice is presented with the book ‘How to Become a Princess’ and, displaying strong and confident vocals, they take centre stage to sing a duet, How To Be Me, to the packed auditorium
The action then moves to another castle, eerie and dingy, in which the Black Knight (Morgan), his henchmen, Ernie and Bernie Blackhead (Finn and James) and his army discuss a plan to kidnap the Princesses and hold them hostage in return for Excalibur – the sword that will make the Black Knight the King.
After another quick and quiet scene change by the crew of stagehands, which includes Hayden, Josh, Blake and Aurora, we return to Camelot Castle where Watt Cobblers is now the apprentice to Merlin the Magician (William). Full marks go to William for wearing the full robes, hat, wig and beard in near 30 degree heat!
Watt’s first job for Merlin involves labeling bottles of potions but, after an encounter with Princess Alice and her pet, Dusty the Dragon (Joel) he gets it horribly wrong but, oblivious to the mistake, the three new friends burst into another really good number, One Of A Kind.
Soon after, the princesses are captured and the ransom demand is for Excalibur which puts Merlin under pressure because he has magically shrunk the sword – and then lost it!
The Knights, supported by the rest of the company, launch into We’re On A Quest as they set off to rescue the Princesses while, over in the Black Knights castle, the Black Knight uses Marvin the Magic Mirror (Kieren) to reveal King Arthur’s plan to rescue his daughters but, after the knights drink the wrong potion and turn into animals, only Princess Alice, Watt Cobblers and Dusty the Dragon are left to take on the Black Knight and set the Princesses free.
With perfectly timed sound, provided by the expert hands of Charlie E, costumes and props provided by the cast (and their families) and a set painted and built by the Year Six team of staff and pupils, What a Knight really is a full team effort.
At a time when many schools are cutting back on their commitment to the arts, it is so refreshing to see a school where the staff, the pupils and their families pull together and get to experience the thrill of creating, taking part in and watching such a wonderful production.
***** Five Stars