More than 20 York schools will take to the stage of Central Hall at the University of York this weekend for the tenth annual Schools' Drama Festival.

Taking place on Saturday and Sunday, 17 and 18 March, the event, which is organised by City of York Council's arts education team, promises to be an extravaganza of theatrical skills.

This year schools have had to develop a piece of theatre linked to the theme of ‘music’. Pupils have had four months to explore the theme and devise a drama piece. Their responses range from exploring myths and legends to using 1950s music as their inspiration.

Colin Jackson, the council's drama consultant, said: "You can always rely on staff and young people in our schools to come up with entertaining and original performances. There is a tremendous amount of creativity out there and the drama festival really does give the groups taking part the opportunity to be daring and adventurous with their ideas."

Ruth Barron, who is co-ordinating Scarcroft Primary School's performance, said: "We began by thinking about the different emotions that music can evoke. We then decided that some songs helped us to believe that we could do anything."

Scarcroft's performance will focus on the dreams that young people have for their futures.

Jane Holdsworth, who is coordinating Clifton Green Primary School's performance said: "Our inspiration came from the song 'Message in a bottle'. The children began thinking about how they would feel if they were washed up on a desert island and about all the things they would miss."

As well as performing on stage, Clifton Green will also be using animation to get their message across.

The festival begins at 2.30pm on both days. Tickets are priced at £3.50, or £2 for concessions, and are available from Arts Education on (01904) 554660.