NOTES FROM THE DRAMA CLUB ORGANIZERS
Welcome to The Alibis!
There is no art form like theatre.
Storytelling is an ancient human skill. Portraying those stories requires a connection to the elements of story, and also develops a deep human empathy. Theatre people eventually become masters at soft skills: 'reading a room' and understanding how verbal and non-verbal communication work. Modern theatre also includes elements of sound, light, and visual design in ways that move audiences to engage. Some of these skills are deeply technical. Theatre is also a business enterprise, requiring planning, budgeting, an understanding of licensing . . . .
Theatre shows are transient. In the end, the product is a handful of performances, never to be repeated. No show ever runs exactly as planned, and part of the art and skill of theatre is the ability to just pick up from wherever you are -- 'The show must go on!'
The organizers of this year's Drama Club already knew there was a ocean of theatre talent at Redwood Middle School. We see this acting talent in the musicals we already have throughout the district. The RMS musical is a polished masterpiece year after year, with outstanding performances. To showcase the actors' talent, professional technical crew are hired, the performances are run in the world-class McAfee theater, and hundreds of hours of rehearsal are required.
At the beginning of this year, as we were talking to our nascent Drama Club about what they wanted to do, we were hearing them talk about wanting an additional experience. The students wanted an experience that they owned. They wanted one that would be lower stakes -- allowing them to experiment.
The performance you are about to see is a result of that experiment. The budget for this show is less than 1/10th of the budget for our RMS musical. The students set the ticket price so that no additional donation from families would be required. The students directed the show and designed it. The sets are built by the students from PVC pipe and cardboard, and the set pieces are borrowed from our SHS sister school. (Thank you!!!) Props are borrowed or built. Costumes are a mix of pieces borrowed from home with a few strategic pieces borrowed or bought. The lights and sounds were researched and in most cases added to the script by the students. Students are running lights and sound, and we have a student stage manager. After the show, the students will discuss the output and make recommendations for next year. (We've already heard from a few of the students that they would -maybe- like one or two more weekend rehearsals!!!)
Thank you so much to Saratoga Theatre Arts, our booster club, for piloting the RMS Drama Club in May of last year and for helping to organize coaching during Drama Club this year. Thank you to the Saratoga High School Drama Club for supporting our use of this space. Thank you so much to the Drama Club families for supporting your students in this experiment.
(And a special thank you to the Davies and the Gavin families, who gave up not only hours of student time, but Erin's and Misty's volunteer time as well!!)
