MANY people of a certain age often reminisce with wonder of their days in high school where theatre was an important, well-respected, and deeply appreciated part of school life. The regulars like Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw were performed, but many schools in the past also allowed students to write and stage their own, original plays.

The education system has changed a lot over the years, but there are still a number of schools around the world and in Guyana that continue to emphasise the importance of Drama. A truth to be acknowledged regarding those schools that do not have Drama as part of their curriculum has to do with a lack of resources. If enough support and funding are provided, there is much that the theatre can be done for each student.

One of several schools in Guyana that does pay special attention to Theatre Arts is the Georgetown International Academy (GIA, popularly referred to as the “American School,” even though it boasts a diverse population from all around the world, including many students and teachers from right here in Guyana). My obvious bias aside, it definitely should be regarded as a school that is constantly sowing and investing in theatre and then reaping the many benefits and rewards that come later. Sometimes, these rewards are the little things, like seeing the joy of the students who go on to the stage for the first time, or seeing a quiet student belt out a song in a musical number, or seeing an energetic student channel all of his/her concentration into choreography. At other times, the rewards are wide-ranging – in the way the plays being performed can teach the student body about themes like love and friendship, in the ways collaboration and cooperation bring students closer together, or when being a part of a theatrical production enhances or reinforces something that is being taught in a Science, History, or English class.

GIA, for good reasons, engages its students in a lot of theatre, and a review of their major theatrical events over the past academic year shows that theatre is being kept alive through a range of diverse, multifaceted, and interesting performance-based events.

The Winter Play
Every year, during the Christmas season, the students of GIA’s 9th Grade Drama class perform a play that is related to the season in some way. This academic year, the students staged a vignette play which, filled with all the good feelings that come with Christmas, was a production that allowed the students to tell multiple tales as multiple characters. The stage was decorated with the usual holly trimmings, candy canes and a large Christmas tree. The costumes were loud and vibrant. Each actor played multiple roles, rotating from kings and queens to singers, to talking animals. Many of the younger students supplemented the performance with singing and it was indeed a wonderful and perfect way to lead us all into the holidays. The Winter Play is one of my favourite annual events at GIA – simply because of all the joy it brings!

The Broadway Summit
In March, many high school students chose to take part in the Broadway Summit trip. This was a field trip, chaperoned by the Drama and Music teachers, as well as parents, that took students from GIA for a series of workshops, led by Broadway performers – newcomers and veterans, in the heart of New York City. Not only did students learn from some of the best in the theatre-business on subjects such as acting and singing, but students also got performance opportunities and they were able to receive feedback on their performances. They also got to attend two of the best shows on Broadway (Dear Evan Hansen and Anastasia), where they even met some of the lead actors. Furthermore, there were plenty of sightseeing opportunities and occasions for students to bond with each other.

The Spring Musical
This is perhaps the biggest and most well-known annual event at GIA, and it was in preparation for the Spring Musical that the students went on the Broadway Summit in the first place. The Spring Musical is the school’s production of a popular piece of musical theatre. Past productions have included The Lion King, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, and Shrek Jr. This year, the chosen play was Beauty and the Beast Jr., which was a great fit for the school because it offered so many opportunities for everyone to be involved. There were the lead roles (Beast, Belle, Gaston, etc.) for the actors, as well as smaller ensemble roles (plates, forks, villagers, etc.) for the younger students to excel in. There were popular and challenging musical numbers for the singers, appealing choreography for the students who liked to dance, and sets that the artists and future architects helped to design. There was truly something for everyone, but the best parts were the little moments in the play that let us know that the job had been completed and done well: the friendly banter between Cogsworth and Lumiere, Belle descending the stairs in her yellow dress, the first appearance of Chip, the little teacup.

The End of Year Play
At the end of the school year, the GIA community worked on a final play for the 2018/2019 academic year. The play was not a musical, so there were no songs or choreography to learn, and in this way, it was simpler than the Spring Musical. This play is Almost, Maine, written by John Cariani. It tells nine stories, each with a different couple, and each focusing on relationships and the concept of love in some way. It is a sweet series of stories, some funny, some tragic, most with a little bit of absurdism or magical realism thrown in. It was the perfect choice for the school because it was entertaining, endearing, and simplistic. It was perfect because it was different from the plays we have done before. It was perfect for our high-schoolers who will soon inevitably begin to navigate their own relationships and evaluate their own understandings of love. It was perfect because the characters, like the people in our lives, make us feel a range of emotions – joy, sorrow, anger – and it was fascinating to see the students bring all of that to the stage.

The point of this overview is not to say that these are the only ways of expressing theatre. Each school is different and it is up to teachers to use what is available to them. It is up to teachers to understand what their goals will be with Drama. Is it to help the students celebrate holidays like Christmas? Is it to present a challenge in the form of more emotional roles for the students? Is it to get the students some firsthand training from real actors? Is it to have them experience a musical? Whatever the goal is, it can be accomplished. All that is needed is a dedicated team who knows and understands that theatre does not rely entirely on resources, but more on imagination, focus, cooperation, commitment, discipline, a sense of fun, and a desire to make art on the stage.