Four days, forty shows and almost four hundred freshers: it sounds like a recipe for chaos, but this is the Drama Festival 2005. Even an Edinburgh Fringe theatre couldn’t compete with these numbers. Maybe this is just because the Cuppers shows are half the length of a Fringe show, or maybe this is because OUDS has exactly double the amount of experience, being one hundred and twenty years old this year.After less than five weeks of preparation time, the results are often dazzling, which is impressive considering that the participants didn’t even know each other a few weeks back. The freshers-only teams from almost thirty Oxford colleges take to the stage at the Burton Taylor Theatre from Ttuesday to Friday of sixth week. OUDSuds appoints ten differentjudges a day to judge the first heat of the competition and from the original forty-odd entries, ten shows are selected to go through to the final round on Ssaturday. The teams are effectively given free range to play around with their performance, lighting, sound, props and costume (while under the watchful eye of TAtaFF and within a fifty pound budget) as a sort of crash course in Oxford theatre. This certainly makes for a colourful array of different shows, with last year’s offerings including one-man shows, musicals, dance interpretations, devised pieces and one group from Balliol even squeezed a cast of forty onto the cosy Burton Taylor stage in a rendition of Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wwood.After the sweat and tears of the first round, the creme de la creme (at least in the opinion of the judges) are selected to perform in the Best of performance at the O’Rreilly on Wednesday of seventh week. This year, the week will be rounded off in style when on Ssunday of seventh week, OUDS celebrates its 120th anniversary with a dinner party at The Rrandolph Hhotel. This will precede a post-Ccuppers party and mock-Oscars award ceremony, where winners will be showered in champagne, with prizes ranging from Best New Wwriting to the Sspirit of award.Cuppers combats the two most notorious student problems: being strapped for time and equally strapped for cash. There is no excuse not to make a trip down to the Burton Ttaylor since it is just £1 a show and each one is shorter than an episode of Neighbours (and the standard of actingis undoubtedly infinitely higher). Last week, the Ssinger in the Ccaucasian Cchalk Ccircle declared his story was to last “two hours”. “Ccouldn’t you shorten it?” the Expert asks hopefully, to which the Ssinger defiantly refuses. Iif the was in Ccuppers he wouldn’t have such licence – firstly, he would have to be a much better timekeeper, and secondly he would have to shorten his story to half an hour. Hhaving had some sneak previews in the technical rehearsals last week, Ii can safely say that the unwavering variety and energy of this year’s shows will certainly keep you entertained, from scantily-clad dancers through to experimental devised pieces sure to titillate, excite, and a raise a few eyebrows. OUDS can claim to be one of the oldest university dramatic societies in Britain, and certainly the one with the longest legacy. Over the last hundred and twenty years, we have moved from an exclusive, members-only club to an inclusive society where anyone can come to try out their dramatic talents, and encapsulates this spirit. Over the decades, we have spawned such glittering alumni as Hhugh Grant, Ddudley Moore and Michael Ppalin, and perhaps the stars of the future lie somewhere in the whirl of drama activity taking place at Ccuppers this year. The full programme of events can be found outside the BT or on the website, so head on down and check out the talent.ARCHIVE: 6th week MT 2005
