From Aristophanes to Beyonce
“Question everything. Learn something. Answer nothing.”
I am THAT drama teacher that gives homework. Yes, I am the worst.
To be fair, I only give homework to the upper grades, specifically my Advanced Acting class. The word ADVANCED is in the title, doesn’t that mean they should be doing extra work? This ‘homework’ that I speak of, involves reading four plays a year and writing a two page reflection paper for each. Well, by their reaction to this assignment, you would think I am asking them to write a doctoral thesis on August Wilson. But I won’t budge. They should be reading plays.
One of the requirements of this project is that one of the four plays has to be Greek. When students hear this they usually shutter. Old plays? Written by old white dudes? Little do they know, Greek plays are usually bloody, controversial and erotic. So much in fact, that I probably should have given students a list of the ‘more appropriate’ plays. Alas, I assumed they would all pick Oedipus… that wholesome gem about sleeping with your mother. That is one Greek play that is ingrained in our culture, therefore I didn’t feel too horrible about the content. Oh Lexie… you fool.
I have one student in the class who seems … less than enthused about being in acting class. He has gone through the entire acting program at school and has arrived, by his own free will, in Advanced Acting. He is a decent actor and a pretty good improviser but has little to no interest in theater outside of the four walls of my classroom (sometimes even within the four walls of my classroom). Hamilton what? Tennessee Williams who? Where is Broadway? It’s endearing at times, but reading plays was a foreign concept. It’s all Greek to him (Get it?)
So about two days before the first Pick a Play is due, this kid runs into my room with this giddy, school boy, I just kissed a girl and I liked it, type look on his face. Yo… Ms. Frare… Ms. Frare… laughing so hard he could barely get through my name. The next sentence began with…
“So, I am reading Lysistrata…”
A google image of the ‘large burdens’
Ahh Lysistrata. That ABC family-esk story about a badass lady who gets an entire village of woman to stop having sex with their husbands until the men stop fighting in the war. Throughout the play the men grow more and more… frustrated… and start wearing ‘large burdens’ to help show the audience their growing frustration. So in conclusion, I pretty much have this student reading Greek PORN.
Me: Oh!
Student: You know what it reminds me of…
(please don’t say porn.. please don’t say porn)
Student: The Beyonce song ‘Who Runs the World (Girls)’. Because Damn… these women know what’s up!
This previously non-interested kid proceeded to explain to me the similarities between Lysistrata and the lyrics to Queen B’s bop. Specifically he mentioned the lyrics:
My persuasion can build a nation. Endless power, the love we can devour. You’ll do anything for me
He said that line could have been taken directly from dialogue Aristophanes wrote for Lysistrata. He went on for ten minutes, elaborating on the similarities between Lysistrata and Beyonce and the innate power of women. His paper however, did not include any of these comparisons, rather he wrote a fascinating, three page comparison between Lysistrata and Game of Thrones.
Will this kid ever be a ‘theater kid’? Probably not. Will he ever understand the inner workings of Annie Baker as one of our newest great American playwrights? Nope. But he will be able to read a play and connect the material back to something that fits in his own little bubble. That is all I want from my students: to experience theater and to make connections.
I have this student again this year. He handed in all four pick a plays on September 27th. He has also done an additional three for extra credit. His Greek choice for 2018 - Medea. The charming family story about a mother who kills her children.
