PUPILS from a Bradford secondary school are sharing a stage with actors from the Royal Shakespeare Company as part of celebrations to mark the 400th anniversary of the Bard's death.

A Midsummer Night's Dream is part of A Play for The Nation - an event that sees the RSC touring the country with the play to celebrate Shakespeare's life and works, and the impact they still have on society. In each city they perform the play, they are joined by a local amateur dramatics group and pupils of a local school.

When it was announced the tour was coming to the Alhambra Theatre, the only stop in West Yorkshire, the RSC got in touch with Samuel Lister Academy in Cottingley to help provide young people to play the Fairy Train in the scenes involving Queen of the Faeries Titania.

The 30 pupils that were chosen have spent the past few months creating their own fairy worlds, learning a fairy song and a dance routine for some of the play's most elaborate scenes, and explore the lines of text that they were going to perform in the show.

And RSC education teams visited the school in the run up to the play to help them rehearse, using the same techniques that Shakespearian actors use, and learn more about both the play and the wider world of Shakespeare.

Actors from Leeds Arts Centre, an amateur dramatics group, play the role of the Mechanicals - a group of actors within the play who gather to perform at the wedding finale. Barry Green took on the role of Bottom, one of Shakespeare's most popular comedic characters.

The pupil's classmates and teachers have been going to see them on the stage since the play started on Tuesday, and more are expected before the final performance on Saturday night. The young actors are playing at different performances, giving all 30 young people the chance to shine on stage.

During the performance, which mixes the original dialogue with 1930s fashions, the pupils were dressed in school uniforms and covered with bright paint.

Despite playing to a crowd of hundreds, in one of Yorkshire's most prestigious theatres, there were no signs of nerves from the young people.

They were sharing the stage with numerous experienced actors - their Fairy Queen Titania was played by Ayesha Dharker, who has also starred in Othello onstage as well as in TV shows Coronation Street, Doctor Who and Waterloo Road and Fairy King Oberon, who has starred on stage in The Canterbury Tales and on TV in Spooks and Wolfblood.

The cast, featuring actors from a variety of different ethnic backgrounds, show how Shakespeare's work has influenced many different cultures, as well as reflecting modern Britain.

A school spokesman said: "The opportunity to take part in a professional production of this scale is incredible, not only for the 30 selected students but for the whole of our Year 7.

"The entire year group has plunged into the magic of A Midsummer Night's Dream, embracing its spirit, passion and wit, while bringing plenty of their own mischief to proceedings.

"Our fairy train has worked with RSC educators and artists, learning all about the beauty of the play through rehearsal room approaches.

"During activities there is a tangible buzz among students.

"This enthusiasm has helped our students believe in the continued relevance of Shakespeare, and that the work belongs to them, their city and their community."

Lizzy Hutchinson, English teacher at the school, said: "I've never seen teenagers so captivated for such a prolonged amount of time. It has been a real career highlight for me."

Jacqui O’Hanlon, RSC Director of Education, said: "2016 is a very special year as we celebrate the legacy of a man whose work, 400 years on, is still studied and performed the world over. We are thrilled that for the first time schoolchildren from all over the UK will get the chance to appear alongside RSC actors as part of our 2016 touring production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

"This anniversary year is about celebrating the legacy of our national poet, and the best way to do that is by opening Shakespeare up to everyone."

After the Bradford run of shows ends tomorrow night the play will move to the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury, with a new amateur dramatics group and a new group of young people playing the Fairy Train.