TES Connect 2026 Summer

Cover Story Creative Learning

Our official Day 1: Workshop Day had the six companies rotating through a variety of fast-paced, practical work shops. These ranged from: playing with the physicality of the animals each com pany had to explore; exploring how to use physical theatre and stylising techniques to explore each company’s inner city land scape; using the cinematic possibility of handheld light, audi ence perspective and space to convey story, tone and reveal a secret world; developing the foundational skills of puppetry and ob ject manipulation, using the company’s set material (either cellophane, butcher paper or chairs) to create a myriad of images from within each company’s land scape; experimenting with sound to build a full aural world that could be layered using the company’s set material.

This festival would not have been the success it was without the dedication and support of the BSHS office staff, TES maintenance team, cafeteria staff, and the many others who worked tirelessly behind the scenes - thank you!

Let’s hear from our TES FOBISIA participants! What did they think of the festival overall?

The final performance was my favourite part because it was a really cool experience - William (Year 7) My biggest takeaway from the festival was my new friends from other schools - Rosie (Year 7) My favourite part was making new friends! - Samuel (Year 7) The biggest takeaway was the amount I learned be cause it feels very useful - Nora (Year 7) Learning how to communicate with people who I don’t know and learning new Drama knowledge were my biggest takeaways - Ryan (Year 8)

Day 2’s Creation Day then provided each company with the time and space to apply what they had learned to wards devising an original piece of theatre. And finally, Day 3 was an opportunity for all companies to rehearse, tech and perform their artwork! The final performanc es, which were live-streamed for the first time at a FO BISIA Drama festival, showcased not only the students’ creativity and commitment but also their ability to col laborate, take creative risks, and communicate ideas through bold, physical, and visually stimulating thea tre. Overall, the entire experience over the three days was a powerful celebration of courage, growth, and the shared artistic journey of every participant involved.

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