The Senior play, 4.48 Psychosis by Sarah Kane, is a raw and unflinching exploration into the mind of someone suffering from depression and is certainly not a play to be taken lightly. However, as Bradfield prides itself on being a ‘talking school’ it was felt that, if dealt with sensitively and respectfully, a production of the play could be a powerful tool for starting the conversation with our pupils.
Without doubt, 4.48 Psychosis is a challenging play to tackle. There are no character names, no stage directions and just 34 pages of continuous text, that looks, feels and reads like a long form poem.
Following the initial read through the cast and directorial team admitted they could not confidently declare that they could understand all aspects of the play. Different lines and different sections had connected with each of them yet, as the discussion continued the cast began to form an idea of what the play might be about and how it could be staged. One thing everyone agreed on was that this was an important play with an important message and it had to be done in a way that the Bradfield audience could access and understand. Weeks of intensive rehearsal followed and after a series of assemblies for all years, the play was staged three times in a completely transformed Old Gym.
