By Raelynn Harris
This year, Derby High School has a new active drama class. The class is based on students who act out a skit of their choice. The class is led by English teacher Kristin Parry period two of the school day.
Derby High School’s drama class is based heavily on students, both past and present. Rebecca Bell, English Department Coordinator, was a teacher involved in the drama class. Bell responds after being asked about the history of drama and theater at DHS, “In 2014 we did the Boy Friend, and in 2015 we did Into the Woods; a former music teacher Mrs. Hanniquin was the person who brought plays back because prior to that, Little Shop of Horrors and Grease. Those were in the years 2009 and then 2010, drama class had ended so the music teacher brought those plays back, mostly students were cast.” The drama class has always had both musicals and plays throughout time.
After being asked who was involved in adding a drama program to DHS, Jen Olson, principal of Derby High School, gives the statement, “Faculty worked together as a team to write the program of studies to provide students with interesting electives to give the opportunities for kids to be creative, to be hands-on. And all the teachers worked together to put together new classes like drama.” Olson also gives the reason for the inspiration behind a drama program in the first place: “Last year students were taken to the Shubert Theater to go and see two different musicals which were Carole King, The Musical, and also Hairspray. There was a large variety of grades and interests, and groups so we thought it would be great to bring that to Derby High School.”
Parry was hired at Derby High School as an English and drama teacher. She moved back to Connecticut where she’d grown up after graduating from Purdue University in 2010, she worked in Chicago for two different schools for the last 11 years. After being asked what drama class includes and what teaching it is like, Parry said, “It’s been fun to learn along with the kids and get excited with them. Students get to choose their roles, after reading lines together as a group of those and choose their role to perform and afterward, students choose a movie or TV show to perform as well.”
Student reactions to the drama class are positive. Daniel Jett ‘24 shares how he feels about drama class: “It feels good because you have to play your role, go over the same lines, and after you get them down, recite them.” Mervin Kandjii ‘23 enjoys adjusting to different roles and characters while acting: “Sometimes you have to play a certain role like a bad person when it’s needed.”
Drama class is solely based on student participation and decisions. Students decide what skits to perform as a group after learning their lines.
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