Brentwood School students perform ‘Lockdown: The Musical’

Once again students at Brentwood School have come together to create an ambitious and unique pandemic production. ‘Lockdown: The Musical’ is a never-been-done-before project written entirely in lockdown by two teachers at the school - and performed entirely by students in lockdown. The musical will be released on Brentwood School’s YouTube Channel on 6th March from 7pm.

‘Lockdown: The Musical’ celebrates the story of Neo and Chloe, a young couple forced apart as a result of the national lockdown as teenagers everywhere navigate a new world full of challenges. Being a teenager in lockdown has not been easy for many students, especially when the government has banned kissing!

However, as hard as it may be, the teens know that deep down the rules need to be followed. ‘Lockdown: The Musical’ is a seven song, 40-minute-long lighthearted insight into a teenage perspective of Covid-19 and reminds us that, although we can’t be in the same room, we can still make special memories together.

This latest and most ambitious project from Brentwood School has been created by Matthew Bulmer, the Director of Performing Arts, and Florian Cooper, Director of Music. It is performed by eight members of the school’s Upper Sixth who were unable to perform in the annual School Musical in December, which was cancelled as a result of the global pandemic. The impressive project was produced and performed in just six weeks entirely under lockdown restrictions.

Matthew Bulmer, Director of the Performing Arts, says: ‘We all felt upset for our Upper Sixth students when the Winter Musical was cancelled this year. It is the highlight of many of our students’ seven-year stint at the school - especially those who have given everything to the Performing Arts during that time. Mr Cooper and I made the decision to write something special for these dedicated and talented individuals in January and a few weeks later here we are.’

Neo M, 18, who plays a leading role in the performance and is hoping to attend Drama School after he leaves Brentwood School in July, says: ‘The most important thing for me has been to stay creative during lockdown and ‘Lockdown: The Musical’ has given me and my friends the opportunity to engage with something really exciting and engaging during a time when it can be really difficult to stay motivated.’

The Brentwood School Performing Arts Faculty has been a national leader in lockdown with well over 70,000 international YouTube views, more than 5000 individual online performance submissions and over 100 virtually staged events. Highlights have included a Les Misérables Spoof video, weekly chamber concerts, full choral evensong, a 180-student production of Bugsy Malone and the school won the 2020 Shakespeare Schools Festival.

Watch the trailer for ‘Lockdown: The Musical’ here: https://youtu.be/L3aBiHLKyds

The full Musical will be premiered here on Saturday 6th March at 7pm: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkVH0QMpBHw...

See the full and extensive list of lockdown performances here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkVH0QMpBHw...