The Royal High School of today places much emphasis on Performing Arts, in many forms including Dance, Stage shows, Choirs, Orchestras and cultural exchanges. Stage is also well represented by Dance shows and Fringe performances in the recent past, but the School’s relationship with Music and Drama was not always so intertwined.
The School curriculum consisted entirely of Latin until the mid-19th century, and Music as a subject was not introduced until 1856, and then as an after-School activity at an additional cost.
There was a Second World War post-war flurry of stage performances, mainly due to outstanding pupil producers and English teachers. 1949 School Dux Karl Miller and Head of English Hector MacIver (Principal English Master 1947-1966) were leaders in this respect.
The overseas exchange trips, initiated in 1975, and the KT Singers in 1978 launched many pupils on their lifetime musical experience. Amnesty International became an annual event, followed by three major musicals 2007 – 2010 which were once again the product of a small team of dedicated teachers, this time led principally by Tom Bacciarelli and Gary Snedden.
Click on any of the following categories to enable an article:
- Timeline – a PDF showing entries from 1839 to 2010
- Annual Report extracts – close on 30K words from the Annual Reports 1968-2018
- European exchanges – 1975 to 2010, also John Murray’s 2006 speech at the RHS London Club dinner.
- The KT Singers – 1978-2018; the fabulous choir initiated by Ken Thomson, now sadly apparently consigned to the memories bin
- BIG Stage Shows – 2007 We Will Rock You ** 2008 High School Musical ** 2010 Hairspray
- Drama – Plays performed include a diverse collection; Shakespeare (several times), Sheridan and those authored by pupils.
- The Fiddle Band – founded by June Nelson in 1994, still going strong today
- Concerts – in 2022, there are still annual concerts, but in the 1950’s and 1960’s they were a highlight of the School year, held in the Usher Hall
- Dance activity reports, 1998-2015 by Tom Bacciarelli
- The School Organ – an article, and the 2021 Organ Concert video
- The School Song – we plan to create several versions…
Several other pages are in course of research and development, including Orchestras, Choirs, and ‘Other Stage Performances’. These will be published in due course. ‘Our Famous Thespians’ is not quite finished but can be seen below.
Our famous thespians (and other performers)
(for thespian, read actors, singers, poets, dancers, writers)
A number of High scholars have reached thespian heights. Some of them have already been recorded in the ‘Famous FP’s’ page (marked *), or FP Biographies (marked **). Sandy Brown and Al Fairweather top the lot – immortalised in bronze on the memorial stage.
The following are some of those born since 1900.
- Robert Garioch
- Norman McCaig
- Al Fairweather
- Sandy Brown
- Ronnie Corbett *
- Karl Miller *
- David Robb *
- Ian Charleson
- Glen Chandler *
- Frankie Poullain *
- Rosie Kay *
- Izuka Hoyle **
The Royal High School Club 