The Catholic New World - Cover Story - Acting classes help shape students’ futures

Karczewski—technical theater teacher at Mother McAuley High School on the South Side—has a laundry list of advantages to theater classes.

“They are not blow-away courses,” she said. “Theater classes help students deal with any situation. They learn how to work together and problem solve. ‘Creative differences’ have to be resolved. Students learn there are no one-person shows.”

Many theater instructors insist their classes are a necessary part of an overall academic program.

“We are interested in educating the whole person,” said Faye Ryan, chairman of the fine arts department at Loyola Academy in Wilmette and director of the school’s theater programs. “Some people think academics is separate from the fine arts. They are not. Fine arts will help no matter what you do in life.”

There are other qualities theater classes help develop.

“They teach decision-making and critical thinking skills that are necessary in adulthood,” said Kristen Mackie, theater director at Mother Guerin High School in River Grove, which currently is presenting the play, “Once Upon a Mattress.”

“Students similarly develop self-esteem and confidence, important qualities for success in the work world.”

Theater classes also help create a sense of disciple, dedication, responsibility and trust of those around them, adds Majorie Mazzola, theater instructor at Mother McAuley.

“Students likewise learn to challenge themselves to be the best they can be,” she added. “Theater teaches us how our words can impact others, how even silence can be effective.”

She also sees the added benefits of students learning research skills and studying history and literature through the theater.

Teachers say another advantage of theater classes is an increase in students’ critical thinking skills.

“Studies have shown that students in the arts do better on ACT and SAT tests,” said Mackie.

Others have a similar perspective.

“Students engaged in a drama program or other arts activities are more likely to do better in science and math,” said Dianne Weinand, drama director at Regina Dominican High School in Wilmette.

“It appears as though arts activities stimulates the other side of the brain and students work from a whole brain process when doing something like math. They use multiple intelligences, which helps with taking tests, movement and perception.”

She adds the memorization skills acquired in drama productions carries over to the academic area.

Like her peers, Weinand sees the big benefit of drama and theater classes as providing an opportunity for leadership and learning how to be part of a team.

“In our highly competitive world you can bury yourself in the computer but eventually you have to get out there and deal with people,” Weinand said. “The people who lead the world are those who can talk to other people.”

Some teachers use drama and theater in their daily classes. Mother Guerin’s Leslie Berg makes literature come alive for her students. She challenges them to act out scenes in the classroom from novels, short stories and poetry. Some students create puppet shows to tell the story.

“Many young people don’t get involved because they perceive literature and history as boring,” said Berg. “When they act out [scenes], they look into the story, learn more about the authors and see it differently.

She says added benefits include higher test scores among students.

“Sometimes the quietest students pick the most lines,” Berg added. “It isn’t uncommon to see a different personality come out.”

She and her senior classes host the annual and very popular Shakespeare birthday celebration at Mother Guerin. “It’s quite interactive,” said Berg. “My students dress up in costumes of the period, do parodies on Shakespeare’s plays, host game shows and make food. All activities are related to the time in which he lived.”

Like her peers, Pat Haynes, chairman at the theater department at Mother McAuley High School, believes strongly in the benefits of theater and drama classes. Her school recently presented the play, “12 Angry Women,” which was about a jury deliberation following a murder trial.

“Theater allows you to examine life,” she said. “Like the play [12 Angry Women], you step into the shoes of another person, live their life for a while and in the process understand their struggles better. The whole purpose of drama is to tell a story and move your audience.”

Haynes—who previously served as the executive director of the Illinois High School Theater Festival—adds that the beauty of theater is it allows a person to “feel” another’s sadness, struggles or joy.

“Service work is great but it can’t give you the emotional insight you receive from studying theater,” she said. “You cannot do it [theater] without integrating the study of psychology, history, sociology and literature. Every show is a different learning experience.”

In addition to the not-so-obvious advantages of studying theater, there are the tangible, practical ones. For instance, all of Karczewski’s students have cordless drills.

“I teach them the basics of carpentry,” she said. “And I’m a bug on safety. My students don’t move up to the second level until they’ve learned the first but they learn quickly. They make flats, paint, do sound, lights and work the computer board. I want the girls to be self-sufficient when they leave here. Even now they can go home and fix things for their parents. It’s neat to watch them gain self-confidence.”

Another practical benefit of theater classes is learning how to be a good audience.

“As a society we have lost some refinements,” said Sister of Providence Kathy Burke, principal of Mother Guerin High School. “Students must learn how to behave and respect others.”

Being a member of a theater audience is different from being at a rock concert or a movie theater.

Burke adds theater classes teach organizational and time management skills, which are important in keeping grade point averages up. “I have also observed over the years that the best teachers are those who participated in drama and theater classes,” said Burke. “They, in turn, make their classes scintillating and come alive.”

For those educators who might be thinking about tightening the bottom line by eliminating theater classes, Burke has one comment.

“That would be a great disservice to everyone,” she said.

“We must produce students who have a respect for all the disciplines and who are able to express themselves in front of others.”