PUPILS at Brandeston Hall, near Framlingham, relished the formidable challenge of cramming a collection of Shakespeare plays into one ambitious outdoor performance.

The Year Six students moved out of the classroom and into the scenic setting of the school grounds to perform for friends and parents.

With the Elizabethan hall as backdrop, the 40-strong cast impressed their audience with an array of quotes, speeches and scenes from more than 20 Shakespeare plays.

Dressed in Elizabethan costume, the pupils performed on the steps of the Rowley Hall to a large and appreciative audience.

The cast danced, sang, and even delivered a special ‘Shakespeare rap’ before presenting collections of quotes based on themes of inspiration, love, revenge and money, and abridged versions of Hamlet and Macbeth.

The audience was also granted an assorted scene made up entirely of Shakespearean insults. Finally, the cast presented scenes from the opening and closing acts of Antony and Cleopatra.

Outdoor performances of the Bard’s plays have become a popular tradition in recent years at Brandeston Hall and the latest production was deemed “a convincing example of how Shakespeare should be acted by schoolchildren, and not just read”.