CULTURE Drama
DRAMA, THEATRE AND BOYS – A MANIFESTO “Boys have an entitlement to drama and theatre throughout their education – College drama will provide for that.” Making drama and theatre is an essential part of being human. Participating helps us to express what we care about and why, reminding us of who we are and what we can be. Drama is a source for cultural capital, identity and heritage; it inspires us to take risks and think critically, and builds social cohesion through collaboration. It can change and shape our lives through developing creativity, cognition, empathy and resilience. Drama and theatre education is creative education that provides opportunities for students to engage in, about and through drama as a learning medium, develop a range of theatrical skills and apply them to create and evaluate performances.
Students work collaboratively to generate, develop and communicate ideas, and develop as creative, effective, independent and reflective citizens, able to make informed choices in process and performance. As Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau said at the Boys in the Arts: great minds, big hearts IBSC conference in June 2019: “These Arts have a critical role. When boys and young people get the chance to express themselves fully and explore who they are, they grow up to be more empathetic leaders, committed change makers and caring citizens of their communities and their world.” Trudeau could not have been closer to our reality: witness the appointment of College’s student leadership team for 2020. “The value of learning drama is educational, social, moral and economic, but it is more than the sum of these parts. Students thrive in schools where drama is accessible to all through the
curriculum – their creative potential is developed, and their wellbeing strengthened.” This is the clarion call of dramatheatremanifesto.co.uk. At College, we ensure boys have access to that entitlement by offering quality drama classroom experiences and quality co-curricular drama making at every level, and by encouraging every boy to experience a wide range of high-quality live theatre in and beyond school. In 2019, we had strong classroom programmes which continued to provoke, inspire, motivate and validate boys’ interest in Nga¯ Toi Drama. Through Years 9–13 we continue to create an ascending spiral of enriched academic and personal growth. Once again, two of our top students (Sam Howard and Nic Pinckney) won NZQA Drama Scholarships at the end of 2018. This commitment is enriched by a strong commitment to speech and drama incursions.
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Christ’s College Canterbury
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