“Great theatre is about challenging how we think and encouraging us to fantasize about a world we aspire to.”

-Willem Dafoe

I started this drama club with one goal in mind: to give students a place to be their authentic selves. For one hour each week, students who might otherwise hide their dreams or emotions at school gather to play and create together; room 34 becomes a playground. Every student is encouraged to bring material they feel connected to, and present it to the group for workshopping. By no means am I expecting - or even hoping for - any semblance of perfection. Rather, I want them to fantasize about who they could be and offer a space to try without fear of judgment or failure.

Every week we start with a warm-up for our bodies and voices, and learn different games for improvisation and ensemble-building. The activities have ranged from physical imitation to observation of behavior, to inventing scenes with unusual situations and characters! Those who feel comfortable and prepared can demonstrate a song, poem, monologue, dance…anything they'd like to work on, and students learn both from receiving feedback and also from watching their peers. To top it off, it is all in English, so they are putting their technical language skills to practical use!