Blood Brothers Play Guide for AQA GCSE Drama

COMPONENT 1 UNDERSTANDING DRAMA 30 Blood Brothers in context The context of a play includes the wider events, circumstances and influences of the period represented in the play: 4 social 4 historical 4 political. The characters in the play are affected by where they live, as well as the politics, economics and concerns of the time. You will be expected to demonstrate how you could use the context of the play to influence design choices. An understanding of the context will also provide insight into the play’s themes and the characters’ feelings and motivations. The first version of the play was performed in 1981 and the musical version in 1983. No specific dates are provided in the play, but the action is thought to span roughly from the late 1950s or early 1960s to the late 1970s or early 1980s. Liverpool: history, society and culture 4 The city was once a centre of industry with a thriving port which attracted workers from many regions, particularly Ireland and Wales. 4 It was badly bombed during the Second World War. 4 After the Second World War, particularly in the 1970s and 1980s, Liverpool’s economy began to fail. 4 Housing for poorer communities was built in redeveloped areas of the city, as well as in outer areas like Skelmersdale. 4 Some inhabitants of poorer inner-city areas were rehoused to these outer areas. 4 In the 1960s and 1970s, Liverpool was particularly associated with youth culture and the thriving music scene. Education 4 Students in state education took a test called the ‘11-plus’ which determined what type of secondary school they would attend: either a grammar school (if they passed) or a secondary modern (if they didn’t). 4 Secondary modern schools were designed for children who were assessed by the 11-plus exam to have less academic potential than those who could attend a grammar school. 4 Private-school students might attend fee-paying schools either as a day student (which meant they still lived at home) or as a boarder at a boarding school (where they lived at the school during term time). 4 Children from middle-class backgrounds were much more likely to go to grammar or private schools than working-class children. 4 Students from grammar schools or private schools were more likely to go on to university than students from secondary modern schools.