Social responsibility is a core competency I have worked on for the past three years now. This past year I have been a Stage Manager at Charles Best Secondary School as part of the Theatre Production or “Stagecraft” course. Since my initial volunteering in my grade 9 year, I have grown immensely as a person in the Stagecraft course. The one area of growth I would like to highlight is my growth in social responsibility. Social responsibility includes building relationships, valuing diversity, contributing to community and solving problems peacefully, these are all things I have learnt to manage and carry out through my journey in the Stagecraft course.
Today I will be focusing on the Best Players Production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Spring of 2024. Through the process of preparation and completion of the show I have demonstrated the core competency of Social Responsibility.
[The cast of A Midsummer Night’s Dream during Rehearsals, Melea following script to fill in for a missing actor (Photography by Kahlara Bolli)]
During the preparation for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, I built relationships with both the cast and the crew by being present at every single rehearsal and Stagecraft class. I got to know every student involved in the production and became a trusted individual to talk to and ask for opinions. I also demonstrated the ability to solve problems in a peaceful way while discussing with crew on division of tasks and responsibilities as well as leading rehearsals for multiple weeks during scheduling or sickness complications. I managed time and worked collaboratively with the cast and crew to stay on schedule.
[Melea and Tina, Stage Managers, meeting to discuss proceedings during Build-In for A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Photography by Kahlara Bolli)]
Show week taught me about valuing the diverse skill sets of my fellow students, crew and cast alike, as we all worked together to build a stage, booth and amphitheatre out of a gymnasium. The varied and valuable skillsets allowed for individuals to take leadership roles while still being open to learning new things and hearing feedback on their process. My contribution to the community was primarily overseeing the process, design and execution of the production and building. I was always available to talk to and ask for second opinions, I took leadership roles and set out ground rules to keep the proceedings on schedule, in design and injury free.
[Cast and Crew of A Midsummer Night’s Dream posing for a final celebratory photograph on Closing Night (Photography by an audience member)]
In the future, I will be continuing the sole role as Stage Manager at Charles Best Secondary School as part of an IDS course, I will continue to develop my core competencies through the legacy-based learning structure of the Stagecraft course and will develop my social responsibility further through practice.
[2024-06-06]