At a time in life when rapid changes in the mind and the body might make the world seem heavy, the levity of staging a classic comedic play serves to make us laugh by shining a light on the follies of human behaviour. Thankfully, there is a writer whose works have remained relevant for 400 years due to his ability to speak to some of the truest aspects of human behaviour. Shakespeare makes up a large portion of the Class 9 curriculum. His works and style are first introduced in a Theatre History Main Lesson, but the bulk of Class 9s exploration of this literary cornerstone is experiential and embodied. The class spends far less time reading Shakespeare than they spend doing Shakespeare.
When attempting to embody characters different from themselves, Class 9 students are made to inspect and interrogate human interaction at the exact moment in their lives when their own perspectives begin rapidly shifting, and they begin to test their own impact on the world around them. Fiction forms a laboratory where interaction can be experimental without being dangerous, allowing new understandings of human emotion to be born. Through these experiments, young people are asked to grow their understanding of those around them in order to better portray new characters, a process that ends up helping them learn more about themselves as well.
Through this process, learners find themselves doing things they previously thought impossible. Common refrains are “I’ll never be able to remember all those lines,” or “I can’t speak in front of all those people.” Many students find themselves becoming far more comfortable with public speaking, and they find themselves speaking more clearly and confidently, even in their everyday lives. Their understanding and appreciation of language itself is grown, allowing them to continue to grow into effective communicators off stage and outside of the school environment.
The growth happens backstage as well. As a team effort, the process necessitates that students learn interpersonal skills, collaboration, and, often, conflict management. With each learner also taking on a production role, often one with which they are entirely inexperienced, they are afforded an opportunity to learn personal responsibility, agency, and the value of feeling like they are contributing to a group effort. New skills are acquired throughout this process, from make-up artistry to stage management and dance, fresh challenges are presented and overcome, showing learners that they are capable of more than they may, at first, believe.
The parents are also an essential part of this process. Their hours of assistance across all departments, from set building to costume design to prop making, their input and creativity are indispensable. This engagement in the High School affords them the opportunity to learn more about the community of young people within which their own children learn and grow, and allows for a unique and special joint experience between parents and children.
Twelfth Night tells the tale of a shipwrecked noblewoman named Viola. She finds herself in a strange land with nothing to her name but her wits and the good word of her ship’s captain. The captain helps her disguise herself as a man, named Cesario, and find work in the employ of Duke Orsino. His tasks for the disguised Viola lead her to the centre of a seemingly insurmountable love triangle, fraught with subtextual allusions to true feelings, mistaken identities, and one surprise wedding. While the nobles fawn over each other, the servants have their fun, play pranks, and fall in love in the corners of the rooms.
The play will run from 8 to 13 September at 7pm, in the Drama Hall at Constantia Waldorf School. Tickets will be available at the door, by donation.
We look forward to sharing this experience with you.
Matthew Kriel, Class 9 Drama Teacher
