50 years on – The Bartered Bride

In 1969, students from The King’s and Queen’s School took part in a production of ‘The Bartered Bride’, by Czech composer Bedřich Smetana. As King’s was a boys only school, drama collaborations with The Queen’s school were common and indeed, preferable to the practice of boys having to play female roles!  

50 years on, two former King’s pupils Anthony Russell and Andrew Green were reminiscing about their fond memories of the production and thought it would be lovely to reunite the cast. Their idea turned into a reality and a reunion for original cast members was held on Saturday 19th October at King’s.  16 original cast members from King’s and Queen’s met to enjoy an afternoon of nostalgia. The event began with a visit to the Vanbrugh theatre (the old School Hall) in which the 1969 production had been performed. It was virtually unrecognisable following the 2011 refurbishment. Following the tour, a delicious buffet-style lunch was served in the Caldecott Gallery. The 50-year gap seemed to melt away as attendees’ exchanged reminiscences of the production, laughter flowed and the archive materials and original pictures from the production sparked great interest and conversation!

The event closed with a performance of The Bartered Bride Chorus and even after a 50-year gap, the guests were still in good voice – click here to view the evidence!

If you have an idea for an event/reunion, please don’t hesitate to get in touch on alumni@kingschester.co.uk  – we are always willing to help make your ideas come to fruition!