Arts

By Sabrina Farrar, Spring Drama Workshop Director

The Drama Workshop program has been a staple in the Ramsey High School Drama Program for many years. Drama Workshop is a class open to all students who have taken the prerequisite drama classes, Speech and Drama and Acting. The class was created to give students an opportunity to perform outside of the three open call drama club productions. The production is entirely student-run, from the director to the costumes, props, publicity, set construction, and lighting. Everyone in the class has a passion for theatrics and drama, and that passion shines through in everything they do.

The Drama Workshop class puts on three plays a year, and I have the fortune of directing the spring show. The production of Days of Our Nights by Daniel O’Donnell will take place on May 13th, 14th, and 15th. This will be the last play of the year, and for the seniors, the last time they will ever perform on the Ramsey High School stage. The position of director is offered to seniors who have already taken the class, so I’m following Kyle Freitag who directed The Mouse that Roared by Christopher Segel in November, and Josh Fergang and Danny Perez, who directed a series of one-act plays this past January. They have certainly raised the bar for me, but I’m excited to rise to the challenge.

This is my second year taking the Drama Workshop class, and I absolutely love it. I have been obsessed with theatre since I was a little girl, and to join such a talented group of individuals with a passion that matches mine every day is a blessing. I participated in all three Drama Workshop plays last year, starring in the first, and assistant directing the second. The second production we put on in the 2018-2019 school year was entitled The Laramie Project by Moisés Kaufman, and that play changed my life. The play showed the aftermath of the death of Matthew Shepard, a homosexual college student from Laramie, Wyoming that was beaten and left for dead because he was homosexual. The play was made entirely of testimonials from the townspeople, Matthews friends and teachers, his doctor and parents, reporters and police officers. It also included testimony from the trial of Matthew’s murder, Aaron McKinney.

This performance was a challenge that we as a class elected to take on because we felt that it was important to address. Not only for the people of Ramsey but for ourselves too. Getting on stage in front of an audience and saying that I didn’t believe the struggles of the LGBTQ+ community are valid or important, watching my friends spew putrid hate and slurs, breaking down into tears every night is simultaneously the hardest, yet most important thing I have ever done at Ramsey High School. Understanding the magnitude with which some people hate, the kindness people can show to complete strangers, and how deep love can be has changed my perspective on life. It has made me more empathetic towards others, and more understanding of the trials children face outside of Ramsey. We are fortunate enough to have the full support of our community, but not everyone is that lucky. So many high schools around the country wouldn’t be able to perform this play without fearing for the safety and wellbeing of all those involved. The Laramie Project is the hardest task I’ve undertaken at Ramsey High School, but I truly believe I have become a better person for it.