A student volunteer whose efforts were ‘instrumental’ in her role as a director within an extra-curricular drama club is taking her love of theatre to new heights following tremendous success in her A Levels. Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College (QE) student, Emma Ransome, who helped to stage two hugely successful productions as part of the College’s Stanhope Players, will study English with Shakespeare Studies at the University of Birmingham having achieved 4 amazing A* grades in English Literature, History, Psychology and Extended Project Qualification. Reflecting on her results and time at QE, Emma, from Stockton-on-Tees, says: ‘I am absolutely thrilled to be heading to Birmingham and to have the opportunity to nurture my love for both literature and theatre is something that I do not take for granted. I am immensely grateful to my teachers, tutors and everyone who has supported me throughout my time at QE and brought me to where I am today’.
Established in September 2023, the Stanhope Players is a thriving enrichment programme which allows lovers of drama and theatre to produce two performances a year for the public. The club has gone from strength to strength, producing a spectacular 80’s inspired version of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, complete with memorabilia and neon lights, followed by a collection of heart-warming monologues based on a talk given by Shaun Campbell from The Arthur Wharton Foundation. In the Shakespearian classic, 18-year-old Emma assumed the lead role of Olivia, whilst for the spring showcase, she worked as director. Julie Ashmore, Co-ordinator of the Stanhope Players, believes Emma’s dedication to the group has been pivotal to its success. She says: ‘Without Emma’s organisation, motivation and inspirational direction of the other actors, Twelfth Night may not have been able to go ahead. When I was unable to attend rehearsals, Emma stepped in and she was unfailingly supportive of all of the members of the team, helping those who had taken on roles at the eleventh hour to rehearse.’ Emma, who joined QE from All Saints CofE Academy in Ingleby Barwick, continues: ‘I am so proud of everything that the Stanhope Players have achieved since September and I look forward to watching it grow in the future. Being a part of the Stanhope Players has truly been the highlight of my time at College and I am very thankful to Julie and QE for making it possible’.
Emma’s devotion to the world of theatre led her to completing her Extended Project (EPQ) on another Shakespeare play, King Lear. Julie adds: ‘When we watched Emma give her presentation, you could have been mistaken for thinking you were watching a professor giving a lecture at university. She was so committed to her project that she travelled to London and watched a production of King Lear that you can only view in the archives of the National Theatre. I am thrilled that Emma has secured her place at the University of Birmingham and look forward to seeing what she can achieve in the British theatre movement’.
