Ankeny Drama Camps Week one: June 16-20

First week of the Ankeny Drama camps and I was terrified; not by the amount of work that I was sure to face or the fact that I am not that musically talented, which is funny in relation to my teaching of a musical theatre class, but what scared me was the level of attention I could hold with these kids. Although I've worked with kids through my job at the daycare and as a camp counselor for years I did not hold the confidence to teach. When I think of teachers I have a picture of experience as well as knowledge and while I've taken some acting classes and been in a few plays I did not believe myself to be suited for the position. I applied on a whim thinking it would be fun to learn alongside more established and eloquent theatre makers, but here I was day one and it was my responsibility to give twenty 4^th-8^th graders a wonderful look into the world of musical theatre.

Lesson plans are crazy because lessons do not adhere to their structure, while I learned it was imperative to keep focus and momentum, the precise times often times went out the window; things that I assumed would take an hour took twenty minutes and vice versa. One that note; however, it kept each day exciting. Lauren Dursky was my assistant and a pivotal part in sculpting the show and engaging the kids both musically and socially. She had a lovely way of posing questions that would alight a spark in the children and reignite their love for the rigorous schedule we were required to maintain.

The camp was called Off Broadway Boot Camp and this was the second summer of its existence, that being said I was given complete freedom to teach how I wished; my only stipulation was that I had a twenty minute performance to showcase the kids learning to their parents. I decided on a Disney theme as I assumed it would be both fun and accessible to the diverse ages I had in the ensemble, and thankfully I was correct. We together created a show that was entertaining for both the audience and the kids. I focused on what I had taken from working at ISU and offered those teachings I found most important, like ensemble, accountability, passion, and respect, to these talented young actors.

After the week reached its conclusion I felt immensely proud not only for myself, but for the hard work and dedication the kids showed throughout our time together. Children have such a sense of wonder that I desperately wanted to keep alive; it’s such an important part of who they are and too often is it squashed in the pursuit of a more obedient character. Theatre needs some rebellion, it needs new ideas to thrive and these actors opened up the door to all those possibilities I had forgotten to look for. Teaching is just as much a learning experience for the person in charge as it is to those seeking the knowledge; everyone has something to share and it’s important to the growth of theatre that we aren’t afraid to offer ourselves up.