on reading, writing, mathematics, and music, and later on, classics and history. The first headmaster to be appointed was F. B. Guy in 1852. The headmaster was to be under control of the college Warden, who would be responsible for the principal governance of the college. Soon after the formal establishment of the college, all references to 'true Church principles' were dropped, with the focus now being on providing an education like that of other British Public Schools. By 1880 there were eight masters and 75 boys (far fewer than the founder's aim of 300); creditors were petitioning for the school's bankruptcy given debts of £160,000; by 1900 there were 292 students, making the school more financially viable. The Greek play Bradfield is renowned for its Greek plays and outdoor amphitheatre. The first Greek play, Alcestis, was performed in the original language in 1881. The play was put on by Headmaster, Herbert Branston Gray to save the school from bankruptcy and was inspired by the performance of Agamemnon at Balliol College, Oxford in 1880, directed by F. R. Benson, who stage-managed the Bradfield performance and took the role of Apollo. The Greek play is normally performed on a three-year rota. The students who act in them receive no formal training in speaking Ancient Greek, and have only nine months to learn the lines and direction, while keeping up with their other studies. The amphitheatre was based on that at Epidaurus and built in a disused chalk pit. It opened in 1890 with a performance of Antigone. The 2006 play, Euripides’s Medea, directed by John Taylor, was noted for including the addition of projected surtitles and incorporating the orchestra into the skēnē, using a ramp covered in sand and flooded to symbolise the sea and Medea's situation of being "between places". The amphitheatre was closed in 2009 due to its poor state of repair, especially the temple building. Following a £1.3 million appeal, the amphitheatre was restored and reopened with a performance of Antigone on 20 June 2014. The College decided not to rebuild the Victorian temple at the rear of the performing area because such "temples" are not true to the design of ancient Greek amphitheatres. The smaller skēnē creates space, making the performance of the plays easier and better enabling the theatre to be used for other drama including Shakespeare. Headmasters 1852 F. B. Guy ?? 1868–1869 Henry Hayman