By Mackenzie Acker
Staff Writer
When you think about opportunities for leadership, empowerment, and initiative at R.J. Reynolds High School, you might not think of the drama department first, but you should. Through the drama department’s continuous support of student-led productions, drama students succeed in a way beyond the arts. This can be seen specifically through the senior scenes process, where students are given complete control to construct and direct a scene of choice.
“They’re entirely student-directed, with student costumes and student choreography,” Theater arts director Nick Zayas said. “The students do everything themselves.”
The process starts with each interested student choosing a scene to direct from any play or musical, followed by lengthy rehearsal and blocking. While a few direct, other drama students act in the scenes. The specific autonomy given to these students empowers them and their artistic ability.
“It’s an incredible leadership opportunity,” Zayas said. “Some of them really flourish and blossom into amazing student directors.”
Until recently, this experience was exclusively for seniors. However, the drama department has expanded the process to include any interested students; even underclassmen can try their hand at directing and leading.
“I started directing my freshman year, a scene from Six the Musical,” Senior Chloe Howard said. “I directed again during my sophomore and junior years. Then this year, I directed a play by myself.”
The unique opportunity doesn’t just hone directing skills; it also teaches lessons of dedication that are transferable way beyond the black box at RJR.
“I think that everybody should have a chance at it,” Howard said. “It taught me a lot about leadership, and it taught me things you can only learn through the experience itself and being given that position of authority.”
The entire process hones in on these values. The student directors take on conducting auditions for their scenes’ parts and managing the actors throughout.
“Understanding the organization that comes with that responsibility is so important,” Howard said. “It teaches how to meet a group of people, communicate with them, and listen to them.”
As spring approaches, the time to start planning these scenes is coming up. For many, like Howard, this will be their last time in high school to direct and perform their scene.
“To me, it’s a little bit wholesome,” Howard said. “I think that when you have that experience as an underclassman, it makes your senior scene 10 times better because you know how to interact.”
Although the end is bittersweet, the strengths gained will stay with these seniors past graduation. An opportunity that others might overlook, senior scenes are just another extraordinary piece of RJR.