by Dartford Grammar School pupils Isabel Rushmer and Jason Taing

Hard work paid off for one group of students with their performance of one of the great classics.

Pupils at Dartford Grammar School staged a 30-minute performance of Shakespeare’s Hamlet as part of the Shakespeare Schools Festival at the Mick Jagger Centre, Dartford.

Rehearsals took place every week for two months for the Year 7 to 13 pupils. Deputy Mayor of Dartford, Cllr Avtar Sandhu, was among the audience at the sell-out show. He said: “My four words to sum up the performances as a whole – enthusiastic, vibrant, comedic, heart-wrenching.”

Director and head of drama Rachael Iddiols said: “I think the cast were fantastic as they were energised but focused throughout the entire show. I thought their performances were excellent.”

Abigail Alltimes who starred as Ophelia said: “I thoroughly enjoyed my time performing with a fantastic cast despite the butterflies behind stage.”

Sam Ogden, who played Claudius, said: “The work that everyone put in was immense and really paid off.”