Shebbear College has once again wowed the crowds with its 2025 Senior School production of West Side Story, writes Joanna Conway.

 The sell-out show, which follows the overwhelming success of last year’s Les Misérables, took place from March 12-15, the first four-night run for a Shebbear production, with a real buzz from cast, crew and audience, who just knew they were in for a treat.

With a cast of over 70 children ranging from Year 7 through to Sixth Form, as well a student crew taking on the technical roles of light and sound management, this year’s production was colourful, energetic and fast moving, and the amazing performances by the lead roles totally captivated the audience.

“This year it just had to be West Side Story!” said head of creative and performing arts at Shebbear College, Rebecca Sadler-Smith. “The talents and skills of this cohort suited this production down to the ground and we wanted to do something that contrasted with Les Mis last year. The quality of singers in the cast is phenomenal and the fact that over 70 pupils wanted to be a part of the production just shows how much we love the performing arts at Shebbear!”

“On stage, it was just so clear how much everyone was enjoying themselves and what I love about Shebbear productions is the amazing team spirit that our students have, with the older, more experienced ones looking out and helping the younger ones, it’s so special and something you really only see in a smaller school. We’ve all got the post-show blues but are looking forward to our next production already!”

West Side Story also introduced a thrilling new element – dance – making it one of the college's most ambitious productions yet with some brilliantly choreographed numbers. The cast embraced the challenge with passion and dedication, delivering some great routines, from the vibrant, high-energy ‘America’ number to the rhythmic beats of ‘Cool’.

One member of the cast who really took the choreography in her stride was International student and Music Scholar Lucia Rodriguez, who exuded stage presence in her portrayal of the feisty Anita, blowing away the audience with her powerful voice and colourful performance.

“I studied West Side Story for music GCSE and from then on, I was pestering Mrs Sadler-Smith to choose it as this year's show!” she said. “I knew I’d be really suited to the part of Anita, and when I found out I’d got it, I was thrilled, I was so excited! My favourite scene was definitely ‘America’!”

Emily Smart, a Year 11 student from Bude, played the role of Maria, capturing the audience’s hearts with her emotive performance.

“This is my first lead role in a Shebbear production.” she said. “I decided to aim high and audition for Maria, and when I got the part I was really excited. My biggest challenge has been hitting the high notes – I'm usually an alto so it’s taken a bit of practice!”

 Maria’s love interest and former leader of the American ‘Jets’ gang, Tony, was played by Lower Sixth student Albert Odlin.

Albert starred as Marius in Les Misérables last year but found the two shows completely different to work on. “Les Mis was all performed in song, which in a way was easier, as you remember the lines with the tune – but with West Side I’ve had to go back to learning spoken lines, and I’ve also had to learn a bit of dance which has been a first for me! The storyline in general and the ending in particular is actually really sad and addresses some quite deep issues so we worked hard to get these scenes right and really engage with the audience.”

International student Jon-Christopher Wright, who also starred as Javert in Les Misérables last year, played Tony’s best friend and leader of the Jets gang, Riff, a character who is in constant conflict with his nemesis Bernardo, the leader of the Puerto Rican 'Sharks’ played by Year 11 student Bodie Carter.

“I did quite a bit of research into the character of Riff to make sure I portrayed him properly.” said Jon-Christopher when describing his role “He’s a cool guy but he has really strong beliefs about what he wanted for the Jets gang and for America in general, which contributes to his downfall in the show.”

 The talented cast were nurtured and developed by the performing arts team at Shebbear College, and their performances were highlighted by a wonderful set, created by the school’s maintenance team and beautifully atmospheric lighting and sound by Illuminate Design, which was fully operated by Shebbear College students as the tech team.

 The show received a full standing ovation on the closing night and rapturous applause from the audience. Congratulations to each and every member of the Shebbear College West Side Story company – watch this space for news on next year’s production!