Power The Theater Arts

As a musical theater performer, I understand the power the theater arts have provided for me in my own personal timeline as well as the ability it has given to better function in a collective towards a common goal. After reading Literacy Development in the Early Years: helping children read and write (2015) I began to question: Why can’t the American Educational System incorporate Children’s Dramatics into the classroom? Has drama ever been a part of the American Educational System? If so, what has changed? In the following pages, we will explore the benefits on the mind and body of the theater arts. Evidence and testimonies from the Disney Musicals in Schools program as well as personal experience and research on the mind and its functions

Simply put, knowing what I could do efficiently to make the production run smoothly - but having no idea what that meant in the industry. After discussing further with my teacher/director, she titled me as the Stage Manager. I took directors notes during rehearsals, stepped in for actors- absent during class, and made costumes and props for the production; utterly overjoyed to be able to progress the production along behind the scenes, until the day of the show came along and one actor was ill. What could be done, the cast was in a frenzy so my instincts kicked in as the costume pasted over my head and I volunteered for the role, that was my first true, out of body experience- I stood back watching myself volunteer as the crowd of actors and my director cheered me on. I can still feel those first gitters. I was nervous and thought of vomiting but remembered there was ‘No! food while in costume’, I can’t recall my time physically on stage, at all--- but I remember the feeling afterwards: free, unjudged, invincible, floating, and proficient. It is a feeling I am still chasing to this day, 13 years, 500+ performances, 7 speeches, and 20 hosted events later, currently directing a show while teaching for DMIS and in a touring show, enough may never be enough. All research and findings have been proven by my own experience, as Schwartz (2016) stated, “learning and sharing are the cornerstone of collaborative learning...often with a trajectory of continued participation and growth” (p.53&193). The many successes on my list are nothing compared to the list of ‘failures’ but “failing is often seen as a constructive part of