They've no school hall and hence no theatre, but that's no deterrent. For the past three years, Hartstown Community School, in Clonsilla, Dublin, has managed to mount blockbuster dramatic productions. The school's first major show was Our Day Out by Willie Russell, followed by the Irish premiere of the hit West End musical, Return to the Forbidden Planet. This week, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Grease has star billing.

How do they do it? Well, for a start, they hire in tiered seating and turn the gym into a theatre which can accommodate up to 200. "It's expensive, but after the first year nobody objected to the cost," says John White, who teaches music and English and directs the shows.

"It gives our students the opportunity to perform in the best possible circumstances. We drape the back and put in simple sets built by the woodwork department."

A core group of staff has built up considerable expertise in costume, sets and stage management, he says. However, this year's production of Grease boasts a schoolboy choreographer. Fifth-year student Daniel McGuire is exBillie Barry, and, says White, dancing is in his blood.

Up to 200 students - from second year up - auditioned for parts in Grease. Everyone gets a role, "but eventually it boils down to 60 or 70 students."

THANKS to White and a supportive principal - Tom Flynn - Hartstown Community School is big on the arts. It boasts both a junior and senior choir. Last year, the school enjoyed a dance project - an outreach programme funded by the Arts Council - in which dancer-in-residence Kevin Murphy held regular workshops.

"Initially, we got 60 applications from students, but the ones who thought it was going to be hip-hop - rather than improvisation and body contact work - fell away and we were left with a core group of 25 who were extremely dedicated."

The programme was so successful that Hartstown is hoping to repeat it next year. "The kids loved it. It broadened their horizons in terms of what was possible and the way in which they could express themselves."

For most youngsters, the only way they can give expression to their thoughts and ideas is through the written essay, White comments. The programme was also taken up as a Transition Year module and became its most popular component. "This was dance and movement and was outside their experience." The pop-culture definion of dance is extremely narrow, he argues. Transition Year students are also given the option of a music module. "We're part of the Music Association of Ireland music scheme which provides us with six musicians, who hold workshops on different aspects of music." Come 1999, some 13 Hartstown students will sit the Leaving Cert music exam. "The new programme has come on stream and is much better," White says. "Students can specialise in one of three areas: listening, composing and performing. All my kids will specialise in performance, which accounts for 50 per cent of the marks."

For White, music runs in the family. His brother is UCD's professor of music, Harry White. At school - St Mary's CBS, Mullingar - he won a scholarship to train as a church musician. As a student in UCD, he became choir master in Finglas. After university, he started teaching music and English and became involved in directing musical shows first in school and then outside. He was "discovered" by Gerry Stembridge, artistic director of the Dublin Youth Theatre, and as a result has worked with the group for a number of years. Most recently, he has directed DYT's production of United Colours of Domino by Nick Kelly, which played last month at Dublin's Project @ the Mint.

Although there's no regular drama group at Hartstown, there is, says White, "a lot of theatre going on outside the syllabus." Up to 25 students regularly attend Dublin theatres - usually once per month. Many theatre groups are particularly accommodating and operate outreach programmes.

Drama, argues White, is extremely important in the school context. "It's ironic that schools have all sorts of programmes to help develop young people - there's CSPE and RSE and pastoral care programmes. But much of the agenda can easily be covered by classroom drama."