Drama X

As the Drama X Ensemble starts winding down for 2020 their passion and advocacy for drama and theatre is heating up. As an ensemble the students are working on ways to promote the importance and benefits of being involved in drama and the arts in general as we move towards 2021. Through workshops, improvisations, and dramatic debates the ensemble is exploring Stella Adler’s statement that, “The word theatre comes from the Greeks. It means the seeing place. It is the place people come to see the truth about life and the social situation. The theatre is a spiritual and social X-ray of its time. The Theatre was created to tell people the truth about life and the social situation”. For Drama X the ‘Seeing Place’ of drama and theatre stems from the meaningful and authentic opportunities to engage the mind, the body, and emotions into a collaborative expression of all that it means to be human. It is this ‘Seeing Place’ that allows them to discover their own voice, grow in confidence, and develop empathy and ethical insights into the contradictions and paradoxes of the human condition.

When considering how we are future proofing our students beyond the gates of the schoolyard we need to ensure we are developing not just the “fundamental skills of literacy, numeracy and ICT, but also skills such as critical and creative thinking, intercultural understanding and ethical understanding” (Professor Sandra Milligan, University of Melbourne). This is where drama and the world of theatre and the arts have been excelling for years. In fact, drama has been delivering key 21st century skills of confidence, creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and empathy for 21 centuries.

The ensemble really wants to illuminate the ways in which creative learning approaches can build confidence, improve academic engagement, positively impact the culture of the College, and enhance a sense of community. Therefore, their mission is underway, and they have become the ‘Total Drama Drivers’ of Mt A. Their mission – to promote, engage, make drama more visible in 2021, and strengthen the appreciation and understanding of the arts.

This week saw them start their mission by interpreting and recreating the essence of a series of quotes and abstract images. Throughout the workshop students used critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and communication skills to interpret and re-create/re-imagine what the images and quotes suggested about the arts to them. Some of their responses to the stimuli included:

Drama gives us an avenue to explore the unknown, awaken our creativity, and find a new way to see the world.
The arts are the centre of life and many pathways come from this. It is what gives our life colour and deeper meaning.
Theatre has connected people from all backgrounds, generations, and life journeys. We can learn a lot about society from theatre as it ultimately holds a mirror up to society and highlights life in the past, present, and possible future. It demonstrates the complexity of humanity.
That from a blank canvass we can create something beautiful, meaningful, and authentic through the imaginative processes involved in the arts.

From their discussions, they decided to focus on the ideas of creating something beautiful and meaningful from a blank canvas that held a mirror up to society - so, as a group, they developed a storyboard of freezeframes that documented the movement of creativity from a blank canvas of white to an aspect of society that has been coloured by the arts. See their finished product below.

Elise Cohen

Teacher