Headmaster's Bulletin 15th September 2023
A host of NSB students were engaged in a hive of school extracurricular activity last weekend. There were highly successful block rugby fixtures against Warwick for the U13s and against Wellington College for the older teams, with wins at U13A/B/C,U14A/B and U16 A team level. On Sunday evening many of our outgoing Year 13 Arts students had one last outing on the Cripps Stage where they wowed a large audience with their performance of 'The Little Mermaid'. Mrs Greenaway gave this report on the performance:
For 10 days a group of our 6th Form leavers with some current Year 13s (and one Year 11 who stepped in to help us out last minute) worked on The Little Mermaid Junior - evenings until late and 2 full weekends (including 2 x 12 hour days). The talent amongst the group was never in question, however, it is always a challenge to pull off a performance in such a short space of time, but we love a challenge! The group worked together brilliantly and it was awesome to see the teamwork and camaraderie; the stalwarts of extra-curricular Drama supporting and encouraging those for whom this was their first performance, all focused on putting on an all dancing, all singing, entertaining show. Their dedication and hard work paid off and on Sunday evening there was so much joy in the Cripps Theatre; such an uplifting show that brought smiles to the faces of all.
Every person on stage had their moment to shine whether it was the wrath of Triton, the sarcasm of Grimsby, the comedy of Scuttle, the Gulls and the Chefs, the sass of the Mersisters and Flounder, the evil energy oozing form Ursula, her tentacles and her sidekicks, Flotsam and Jetsam, the sheer happiness and fun conveyed by Sebastien, and indeed, the whole ensemble bringing the world under the sea alive. And not forgetting Ariel and her quest for her Prince, the rendition of Part of Your World was epic and she was so charmingly supported throughout by Prince Eric.
The enjoyment felt on stage by the performers was infectious and there were rave reviews from the audience who included current students, parents and staff as well as lots of ex-students all saying it was so much fun. It is always particularly lovely to see the ex-students who come back time and time again to support NSB Arts because they know how precious the experience of being part of the Arts was for them.
It was a very fitting goodbye to our leavers who are going onto the next step of their journey, we wish them all well and look forward to hearing about their new adventures. A huge thanks to the cast and crew, staff and students, our technical/backstage crew, without whom none of this would happen, and Ms Hasan who worked tirelessly with a group of students to ensure that the costumes were so vibrant - hand sewing from morning until night.
Once again, there has been much laughter and memories made that will last a lifetime.
'The Schools Championship' is a highly prestigious English U18 Rugby tournament featuring seven of the top school rugby teams in the country. This is only the second year of the competition and NSB are honoured to be one of the teams competing for the trophy. We open our account tonight under lights against Ipswich School (8pm K/O for the 1st XV and 6.30 for the 2nd XV) - and it promises to be a tightly fought affair. All games are televised with commentary - the video link for the two games can be found here:
Many congratulations to Year 7 student Jude Constable who was part of the 'Northampton Ducks Flag Football' team who emerged victorious as UK champions after winning the prestigious 'Brit Bowl' for their age group last weekend. You can see Jude below, proudly displaying his victor's jewellery - as is the custom in the US NFL! Jude was also made MVP for his team.
I'm very much looking forward tonight to speaking at the Reunion Dinner for the 1966-1973 cohort as part of their 50 year celebrations. The former student network is crucial to the school in so many ways, not least in inspiring the current NSB year groups to realise their potential.
The full extracurricular programme for all year groups this term has now been published on the school website (link on NSB Home page), with well over 200 clubs and interventions running every week, with still more activities to be added over the remainder of this term.
And finally, many congratulations to former student Charlie Goddard who has landed the lead role of Eddie Reynolds in the British Film ' Look to the Light' which is currently in Post Production, this is fresh from his critically acclaimed performance as one of the variety of 'Kens' in the Summer Blockbuster 'Barbie'!
Richard Bernard
Headmaster
