At the Upper School, drama and theatre form a dynamic, stimulating and rewarding program that prepares boys to be participants, creators and critics of theatre. Movement, trust and improvisation exercises, acting theory, theatrical design, theatre history and approaches to and interpretations of scripts create a strong base.
Thespian arts run deep at UCC. The school has enjoyed a long history of successful theatre productions for a number of reasons:
- UCC still stages classical plays. A lot of schools have moved away from this art form.
- The extra-curricular theatre program at UCC is fully co-curricular, run in partnership with girls’ school The Bishop Strachan School from Year 1 through to IB2 (Grades 8 to 11).
- Students don’t just act or work behind the scenes of a show. They even get the opportunity to direct the shows (with some faculty support, of course).
There are opportunities for students as: actors; set, stage, costume, lighting and sound designers; stage managers; and other roles.
UCC's Upper School theatre performance venues are the David Chu Theatre and a lecture theatre for smaller productions. An extensive collection of costumes and props helps inspire students, who also have opportunities to work with theatre professionals.
The 2013-2014 production season included The Faith Healer, Agamemnon, Tommy: The Musical, Law and Order: Fairy Tale Unit and the student-directed Paradise Lost.