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TIME IN THE LIMELIGHT HIGH SCHOOL THEATER PROGRAMS IMPART VALUABLE LESSONS By Dylan Roche
D
uring most hours of the day, drama students live the lives of ordinary teenagers. But for a few hours after school when they’re in rehearsal, they might suddenly become pirates, gangsters, historical figures, mothers, fathers, witches, or any other colorful character living a life much different from their own. Don’t let the escapism fool you—for these teens, what they learn in rehearsal is very relevant and applicable to the real world. “It builds confidence, character, friendships and helps those students who may be lost find their place,” says Lauren Schene, director of theater at Archbishop Spalding High School. “It’s more than an extracurricular activity,”
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she says, “It’s a place to call home.” Most theater programs at public and independent high schools put on at least one full-scale production a year, sometimes as many as three or four. The educators who head up these programs concur that these productions take a lot of work, but they offer valuable lessons for the teenagers. “I think that students learn a great deal from doing theatre, essential skills like time management and quick thinking,” says Ron Giddings, drama director at Severn School. “They learn to be empathetic and how to literally put themselves into someone else’s shoes. These are all life skills that will serve them in whatever pursuit they choose.” At any given school, a theatrical production will provide opportunities
for dozens of students both onstage and behind the scenes, bringing together actors, singers, dancers, musicians, designers, technicians and other talented artists. “Between tech, actors and pit performers, our current production has over 100 students involved,” says Kevin Reagan, drama director at Kent Island High School, which is currently working on a production of The Wizard of Oz. “For the musical, we audition in November, begin rehearsing in December, and our productions go up the first and second weekends in March.” With rehearsal schedules that sometimes go for six, eight or even 10 weeks, many theater programs are faced with the challenge of working around the dizzying schedules of so
