OU Freshers Take Centre Stage As Curtain Rises On Competition

The iconic Oxford University Drama Festival returns this week, offering an entertaining night out for just £1 per show.

The drama festival “Cuppers”, an annual intercollegiate competition at Oxford University, kicked off this week at The Burton Taylor Studio.

The festival is held during the first/second week of November (that’s the 5th week of Michaelmas Term for alumni readers) and is a way for Oxford University freshers interested in drama to step into the spotlight.

The performances began last night with teams putting on 20-minute productions, either previously published or original student-written work.

This year's festivities feature a forgotten tradition with each group creating 50 unique ‘tickets’ for their plays.

Tickets in previous years have ranged from shot glasses to plastic bags.

The final, featuring the top four productions picked by a panel of judges, will take place on Saturday the 16th of November between 6.45 and 8.45 pm.

The following awards are up for grabs -

• Best Marketing

• Best New Writing

• Best Supporting Actor

• Best Actor

• Best Director

• Spirit of Cuppers Award

• Best Graduate Production

• Best Tech

Due to the limited audience capacity in the 50-seater Burton Taylor Theatre, performances are likely to sell out.