Drama Assembly – Back on Stage

The theme of the Drama Assembly this week was: ‘Showcasing a Rehearsal: Narrating a story on stage using emptiness and vastness of space’. Students were given the opportunity to use their acting skills with their bodies, voices and emotions, on a large theatrical space. This was done through the format of using a story of an actual rehearsal done by the students which became the final product – a large story with short stories in them. We got into contact with Virika from Grade 11 and Mr Ivan to find out more about their Drama Assembly.  

We were bending the rules a bit by having this Assembly take on the form of a production, with a plot and a story – Mr Ivan, Creative Arts Teacher 

The theme of the production was to explore emptiness and portraying theatre as being much more than just dialogues. According to Virika, drama is a surreal experience which gives people an opportunity to express their emotions openly. “It surely acts as a blessing in disguise for me”, says Virika and laughs, as it quite literally happened during the Assembly performance.  

Students for the Assembly were selected based on their commitment and passion to Drama, as well as their available time and devotion to take part during breaks and after school. Some of these students are part of the After School Drama Club, from which students voluntarily offered themselves for the task and took it as a challenge. Preparations were done by the students during a week, utilising every break and available interval. “We brainstormed and performed during practice at the same time, so that the students had a major say in their own performances and could themselves act as directors to their own material”, explains Mr Ivan, about how the rehearsal was the story done on stage. 

Many students are passionate about performances and give their entire effort to impact and influence the audience. “The stage is where I am the best version of myself. Performing live was empowering and I crave this exhilarating experience”, says Virika with passion, as she is pursuing acting and producing as a future career. “I believe that my imagination and performances build on each other to break the limits of my creativity and inspire me to be my authentic self”, says Virika, who is grateful to be a part of the creative process which gives her insight to the world of theatre. 

Mr Ivan and the team tried to bring back physical attributes that are better when carried out live and to give the experience of performing on stage to the students – a way of preserving theatrical traditions. The results were remarkable, since many things were always improved by students, the more they rehearsed. “The major challenges were getting every student at the same time amidst a raging health concern of a viral bug that was spreading”, says Mr Ivan, adding how the students overcame the hurdles and executed their tasks very well.  

List of participating students

Grade 6: Navyamallika, Neil, Vedanth, Keyush, Shiven, Shiva  
Grade 8: Parissa, Ryka, Aditi, Harshika, Prarthana  
Grade 11: Theodor, Sneha, Sushmit, Anika, Virika