The Festival of Education and beyond, at Wellington College

Surrounding the Wellington College Festival of Education last weekend was a collection of events selected to expand the concept of Education for pupils and parent alike.

The first of these events was De Profundis, a play written and performed by Paul Dale Vickers, who also spoke during the Festival. Paired to a piece of music the 50,000 word letter written by Oscar Wilde to his lover, Bosie, while he was imprisoned in 1897 was transformed into a one man musical. The piece won Leicester Square Theatre’s The New Musical Project. De Profundis (Latin for ‘from the depths’) was a tribute to Wellington's ambition to bring more thoughtful and challenging theatre to its pupils.

Friday night, after a busy day at the inaugural Festival of Education, Wellington College hosted its first Combined Concert with the College both in the UK and Shanghai.   The night’s performers ranged from a string ensemble, brass solos and the Wellington UK A Capella group. The climax of the concert was undoubtedly the amalgamation of school choirs on stage as Wellington College Shanghai Wellingtonians performed with their British counterparts.