Written by: Olivia Blumke
“As an educator, I feel like the drama club is a very important part of the high school experience and want to see that it continues to flourish,” Matthew McKay, director of the Northview Drama Club said.
Drama club is one of the many opportunities the school offers for students to have fun and express themselves. The club offers everyone a safe place for exploring creativity and to expand students’ theatre arts skills.
The club meets every other Wednesday in the Performing Arts Center (PAC) after school and is open to all students, whether a student is an upperclassman experienced in theatre or a newcomer hoping to widen their acting talents.
“We also learn a lesson or two about improving our acting skills or our understanding of the fundamentals of theater,” McKay said.
Drama club helps students learn about exercises and skills that will help them become better actors while also playing a variety of different improv and scripted games. Every meeting is filled with fun energy and unique activities.
If a student wants to pursue acting but doesn’t know where to start or doesn’t want to do a big play, the drama club and theatre department have pursuits for everyone.
Every fall, the drama club hosts Halloween escape rooms. Different roles are offered to students, this allows students to help with the theatre department without committing to something long-term such as the fall play or spring musical.
“So not everything we do has to be about speaking lines in front of an audience,” McKay said.
They also offer other short-term opportunities for actors, writers, and aspiring directors.
24 Hour Theatre is annually put on by the drama department in December. Students get to collaborate with others on an acting project without feeling the pressure some might feel with acting in a big project.
“I think theatre is often misunderstood in schools. It is, at its heart, an artform based on communication and collaboration,” said McKay.
Sometimes schools don’t offer a creative outlet for students to take a break from stressful things, but drama club gives students a way to have fun and take it easy.
McKay commented, “We really try to educate the whole person in theater. And that is a message we want to get out to students. ‘Theater offers you useful life skills! So come out and give us a try.’”