Why Drama is so Important in School – PART 5 – EDUCATION

Part 5 of the 12 part series: Why Drama is so important in School. – EDUCATION

One of the best byproducts of drama is in-depth education into a specific subject matter.  There are two sides to this:

  • On Stage
  • Backstage

ON STAGE

Whatever you are performing, there is always a place and setting for it. Many times there’s a musical genre as well. This doesn’t even include new vocabulary or famous quotes and speeches.

If you perform one of these plays, you’re also learning history:

Areas students learn about:

  • Teamwork – you can not do any type of a production without learning how to work together!
  • Vocabulary Development
  • Studying Literature
  • Non-verbal communication
  • Creative writing
  • The mental make up of a character – their backstory and motive, expressing their emotions, even how they walk and talk. (Do they have a limp, why? Do they have an accent, where from?)
  • History: 
    • The time era – from B.C. to the 90’s – the time in history is typically woven into a play
    • The dress and attire of that time
    • The language around that time – from Old English Shakespeare to Tennessee Williams or Arthur Miller to modern day english

BACKSTAGE

There are a variety of real life skills that are learned when working on a production. The best part, these are hands-on, learn by doing, resume building experiences. Here’s a few:

  • Director – People management and overall planning, time-lining, and execution of the job.
  • Stage Manager – responsible for cast and crew’s punctuality, lighting, and other technical arrangements. As well as, they are THE BOSS once opening night goes live!
  • Set Decorator – responsible for selecting, designing, and fabricating the set
  • Scene Designer – Graphic artist
  • Lighting Manager – responsible for the technical management of all lighting
  • Make up artist 
  • Costume Manager
  • Sound Designer
  • Choreographer

Education is intertwined in any play that we do.  The best part about plays is that you have to review them again and again, so the education gets wired into our brains.  Because of this, I can remember every play I have ever been in, as well as the people I was with too. You?

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About brendan kelso

Brendan is the main creative source and author behind Playing With Plays and the infamous Shakespeare for Kids series. You can typically find him inventing by day, playing with his family by night, and writing by very late night.

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