All the world is Zoe's stage

BUDDING STAR: Zoe Spence, a John Paul College Year 13 drama captain, has been selected for the National Shakespeare schools production. PHOTO/STEPHEN PARKER

A John Paul College student dedicated to drama got the shock of her life after being accepted for the Shakespeare Globe Centre New Zealand national Shakespeare schools production.

Year 13 drama captain Zoe Spence said receiving the call saying she had been accepted into the programme "completely took me by surprise".

"It was the last thing I was expecting, I got the shock of my life because it was totally out of the blue.

"It took a while for the information to actually sink in but then I started to get really excited."

This month, Zoe travelled to Wellington with her fellow drama students to take part in the Festival of Shakespeare in Secondary Schools.

"It was our five-minute adaptation of a scene from A Midsummer Night's Dream that was selected from the regionals to compete at the nationals," she said.

John Paul College drama captain Zoe Spence was selected for SGCNZ 2015 National Shakespeare Schools Production Photo/Stephen Parker

"It was a comedic piece and, because they are typically not as popular as the more serious pieces, we went down to the national competition saying our main goal was to just make people laugh."

The regional festivals involved more than 270 schools and 6000 student actors, performing five-minute and 15-minute excerpts from Shakespeare's plays.

At the national festival, 48 students were selected for the national Shakespeare schools production.

From this select group, 24 students will be chosen to perform at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre in London, in 2016.

Zoe said she would love to perform in London.

"Drama has been a passion of mine for such a long time, and it would be a real accomplishment to go to London and perform at the Globe Theatre."

Zoe joins a long list of John Paul College thespians who have achieved this status.