The Perse Upper School hosted the annual ‘Ludi Scaenici’ Latin Drama Competition on 24th May. A number of schools took part, each entering their own specially-created play, written and performed in Latin. Our talented St John’s Classicists won the whole competition with their self-written play entitled, ‘It’s a Matter of Life and Death’. The pupils involved are in the fourth year of learning Latin and the plays have to be crafted from language and situations that they have encountered while studying Cambridge Latin Course Book 1.
The St John’s entry imagines the gods becoming bored and they decide to lay a game to make their world more fun. However, things get out of control and all the favourite Cambridge Latin Course characters end up in the underworld, dead. Pluto is not best pleased and order the gods to put the mortals back in their bodies. Unfortunately, it is too late as the funeral pyres have been lit. One spare body is found, but who deserves to have it? The mortals hold a debate and Pluto asks the audience to clap the loudest for who will be deemed the winner.
The cast featured twenty girls and boys from Sixth Form who looked resplendent in their costumes and are to be commended for all their hard work. The judges were hugely impressed by the energy they used to bring the play to life. Classics Teacher, Mrs Clare Taylor, explained, ‘The creation and performance of a play in Latin takes both courage and creativity. I was delighted by the quality of their finished piece and the acknowledgement of the judges that their pronunciation was accurate and the content of the play was both funny and engaging.’’
