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Why an English Drama Group at the PH?

The purpose of the English Drama Group is to stage English language plays with foreign language learners in the original version. This way, students training to become teachers can experience the educational effects of acting in a foreign language first hand. With any luck they will be able to incorporate these experiences into their own classroom practice in the future.

Why act in English?

Acting in a foreign language has the potential of changing a person’s attitude towards the target language. Surprisingly, it is in particular people who struggled with the conventional methods of language learning at school, who find using a foreign language on stage a liberating experience. At the same time, making theatre in foreign language can also open up new approaches and perspectives on acting itself.

Why see a play in English?

Theatre is a visceral experience. We don’t just follow the text of a play. There’s lots to discover with all our senses. Not being able to follow the action word for word makes you rely on these other aspects of theatre even more and makes you appreciate them afresh. It also creates a more comprehensive experience of the target language: through our eyes, noses, taste buds and sense of touch as well as through our ears. This is why theatre in a foreign language can enhance both your experience of the theatre and of the foreign language.