Perform Drama, Dance & Singing Classes

Perform has been running at Queen's Park Community Church every Wednesday since September 2015. The 4–7s group meets from 4pm to 5pm; the 7–12s take over from 5:05pm to 6:05pm. Eleanor is the Producer, Isabel the Teacher, and the class is regularly visited by Area Partner Sophie.

Each session draws on drama, dance and singing. The curriculum is organised around what Perform calls the 4 Cs: Confidence, Concentration, Communication and Coordination, woven into every activity. In the 4–7s class the mixed age range is deliberate — younger children are stretched and stimulated by older classmates, while the older children develop early leadership habits by influencing activities. In the 7–12s sessions, the emphasis shifts: Perform is explicit that a child's character and prior experience matter more than their exact age. The acting work covers drama games, vocal projection, physicality, accents and improvisation; movement sessions build from energetic group work towards technical coordination; speech and singing develops articulation, projection and basic musical reading. Class sizes are capped at 22 children, with two Perform staff members present in every session.

This summer the 4–7s are sailing aboard the Jammy Dodger in the Mermaids & Pirates theme, while the 7–12s are working through The Dream — Perform's retelling of A Midsummer Night's Dream, featuring Oberon, Titania and a cast of footballers, pop stars and celebrities. The current term runs from 15th April to 15th July, with no session on Wednesday 27th May. Classes use a rolling curriculum, so a child can join mid-term without waiting for a new block to start. Three times a year, family and friends are invited to half-termly Open Workshops and end-of-term Presentations to see what the children have been working on.