MACT

by Sondra Morton, Theater Arts Director
Act Too Players of Franklin, TN
https://www.acttooplayers.com/
Reprinted with permission

A Theatre Education is Vital for Well Rounded Youth Development

• Self-Confidence:
  • Taking risks in class and performing for an audience teach students to trust their ideas and abilities. This confidence will apply in nearly every aspect of their future.
• Imagination:
  • In a world addicted to technology, theatre provides an outlet for making creative choices, thinking new ideas, and interpreting the material in expressive ways that are the essence of drama.
• Empathy & Tolerance:
  • Acting roles from different situations, time periods, and cultures promotes compassion and tolerance for others.
• Cooperation/Collaboration:
  • Theatre combines the creative ideas and abilities from its participants.
• Concentration:
  • Playing, practicing, and performing develop a sustained focus of mind, body, and voice which helps with other areas of life including school.
• Communication Skills:
  • Drama enhances verbal and nonverbal expression of ideas. It improves voice projection, articulation, fluency of language, and persuasive speech.
• Problem Solving:
  • Students learn to communicate the who, what, where, when, and why to the audience. Improvisation fosters quick-thinking solutions, which leads to greater adaptability in life.
• Fun:
  • Theatre brings play, humor, and laughter to learning; this improves motivation and reduces stress.
• Trust:
  • The social interaction and risk taking in drama develop trust in self, others, and the process.
• Memory:
  • Rehearsing and performing the words, movements, and cues strengthen this skill like a muscle.
• Social Awareness:
  • Legends, myths, poems, stories, and plays used in drama teach students about social issues and conflicts from cultures past, present, all over the world.
• Aesthetic Appreciation:
  • Participating in and viewing theatre raise appreciation for the art form. It is important to raise a generation that understands, values, and supports theatre’s place in society.