Activating Theatre at Hackett Catholic Central High School - Part 2
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Authors
Natonek, Paul
Issue Date
2003
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Theater -- Miscellaneous
Alternative Title
Abstract
As a student I do not think I ever realized the discipline, effort, and
attention to detail it takes to be a teacher. After going through a school
system for the last fifteen years, the organization in the classroom always
seemed structured and fairly similar to the year before. When I took on
this project with the Hackett High School improvisation group, I figured
the classroom would do most of the work. I had never really thought
about teaching as a career, but I thought I should give it a shot. Not for
finding a new career path, but the experience would help me learn more
about myself. At the outset of the project I was a little nervous. I had
attempted to complete two other projects in the psychology department to
fulfill my Senior Individualized Project credit for the school. My first
project was going to involve experimenting with the effects of art on
people rehabilitating after surgery. I was going to take a sports
psychology angle, which is something I am very interested in.
Unfortunately the person I was going to work for put an end to the project
before it even began. The plan was to work at a new rehabilitation
facility through Bronson Hospital, but my supervisor was unable to take
on anymore student workers for the summer, leaving me without a Senior
Individualized Project for the summer.
My second project came through one of the psychology professors,
and involved working at the Center for Community Mental Health. This
project was going well, but it was not a part of the field of psychology
that I am interested in and the literature I was expected to look for on the
topic did not exist. When Nicholas Kessler came to me with this project I
was skeptical. I took the improvisation class in the spring a year earlier
and the section on Activating Theatre was my least favorite section of that
class. This made me reluctant to agree right away. So I agreed to sit in
on a class, rehearsal and performance before I made my final decision.
After seeing a performance and the creative process in the rehearsal, I
decided to give it a shot. Watching Nicholas facilitate a class discussion
and the students bounce ideas off of one another trying to come up with
the most concrete scenes for the audience was something that I wanted to
be a part of. From this project I expected to obtain some knowledge about
teaching and being the leader of a group of young adults. Unfortunately I
went into the project with the idea that it would technically run itself and
I would be there for a support if needed.
Description
35 p.
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