A new studio and lecture theatre, the Robert Dudley Studio, which opened in mid-2024, is now providing additional opportunities for our pupils.

The studio is the latest major facility delivered through our Estates Strategy.

Drama has enjoyed a resurgence at QE in recent years and the new studio provides greatly improved facilities, enabling us to strengthen the dramatic arts at the School. The studio was  created from existing rooms within the Main Building (scroll down for more details), with conversion work starting in the spring of 2024. It has a capacity of 200, so that an entire year group can be accommodated at the same time.

The choice of project was a recognition that through drama, and through other performance-oriented activities such as public-speaking and debating, boys learn oracy and self-presentation skills that will stand them in good stead in their later lives and careers.

They come to appreciate that communicating effectively means more than simply speaking words aloud: it is about posture, tone, and projection, about understanding and ‘reading’ others. Moreover, by engaging with great minds such as Shakespeare, pupils gain a broader understanding of argument and nuance; they can savour, and hopefully make use of, the wonderful richness of the English language, and they learn to reflect more deeply on the human condition. Participation in drama, public-speaking and debating, thus helps equip boys to become the leaders of the future out in the ‘real world’.

Of course, some people ‘come alive on stage’, as the saying goes – and the School certainly wants to offer those boys opportunities to develop their acting further. We also want to provide avenues for others who find their métier in areas such as sound and lighting.

Completion of the project required a substantial investment, which The Friends of Queen Elizabeth’s are supporting, together with members of the 450 Club. The studio has been equipped with tiered seating (sponsored by 450 Club members), theatrical curtaining, and, during the autumn of 2024, with audio-visual equipment.  

  • Fundraising continues: money raised will be used to purchase further audio-visual equipment or, for more specialised items, to hire equipment when required. Scroll to the bottom of this page for our latest update and photos. Show your support by making a donation here.
  • Although created primarily for drama and the spoken word, The Robert Dudley Studio is a highly flexible facility. To read our news story about its multiple recent uses, including for dance and a film screening, click here.

“It’s a great honour to support this incredible initiative at QE”

Global internet personality, top podcaster and Old Elizabethan Jay Shetty (1999–2006) has spoken out in support of the Robert Dudley Studio. After a period living as a Hindu monk, Jay started his career at Accenture. He has been listed on the prestigious Forbes 30 under 30 list and is known for his mission of “making wisdom go viral”. Watch him below explain why he is backing the project.