How do you solve a problem like … doing a school musical in a year of global  pandemic?

This is the year when there have been many hard knocks and even tragedy for many of us and  at the very least hard lessons for all of us. In the context of giving up things, of being grateful for what we have, of having to reduce things to their essentials, of being challenged and finding solace in being creative, we have done what seemed impossible - made a musical into a movie!

In many ways the musical movie was the only way to go: and from the outset it was obvious that the only certainty was that we could not do as we always had. At its inception, looking at the worst case scenario, this would be a Mary Poppins with no songs! Finding an approach that would work technically with no incidental risk was my first draft; no songs, and no dialogue. However no-one should seriously expect much of the first draft to make it into the final cut. Things moved on - quite quickly, but time was already short. But the rainbow of technical solutions was definitely not there at the start, and the first steps of the project were tentatively built over the edge!

Thanks to the help and backing of all involved, students, teachers, admin and the film agency JLF this year’s Mary Poppins adventure, far from being a challenge too far, has been full of mutual support and the energy that artistic collaboration brings.

We hope that the result of this is as rewarding to watch as it has been to make.

Jules Harding