Policies of the Drury Drama Team

The Amy Award - The Amy is an award presented in honor of the memory of Amy Remillard, Drama Team class of 1995. It is usually presented to one senior and is selected by Dr. Radin

Thespian Honor Stole - Students who are Thespian members may graduate with the Honor Stole if they have a 90 or better average in theatre during the past four marking periods. This includes the last marking period of junior year and the first three marking periods of senior year since the stole is awarded at the Thespian dinner during the last marking period.

Best Thespian Award - These are two awards selected by all active members of International Thespian Troupe # 5135. The selection is presented to students who not only have demonstrated their talents on and off stage, but have contributed most to the educational environment of the Team and have shown the most team spirit and professional approach to acting.

The Willie - The Williamstown Community Theatre award is usually presented to two students. Dr. Radin selects the winners.

Ron and Tiger Waterman Technical Theatre Award - This crystal award is presented to the Drama Team member who has contributed most to the Team's effort through technical theatre. The winner is selected by Dr. Radin.

Alumni Award - The Alumni Award is presented to alumni who contribute to Drama Team productions.

Honor Bar Award - Students who are in good standing in the Drama Team and graduate with 60 or more Thespian points are awarded the Honor Bar medal. Points are awarded only for completed tasks of excellent quality. The honor bar is awarded at class night only to those students that have above an 80 average in drama during the last two semesters.

Class of 1961 Rising Star Award - This award is presented to the student achieving the highest academic average in either theatre course at Drury.

Click here to see past winners of all awards.

Rules and Policies

Casting a show in the context of educational theatre involves selecting that group of actors that are artistically most appropriate for that show, attempting to stretch each cast member to their maximum capability, and trying to spread parts around as equally as possible. These three factors are almost always in conflict to some degree in almost every production. While auditions may be a tool in this process, it is only a tool and not the process itself. Occasionally, a role may be assigned without an audition, based on past performance. In addition, I always place a great deal of emphasis on responsibility, behavior, team spirit and cooperation in selecting my cast. An actor's behavior and performance in past productions and class assignments are very important in my casting decisions. If a student has a history of missing rehearsals or theatre classes or failing their tech job, I may not cast them.

All students in the theatre arts classes at Drury are required to participate fully in the November production. Students outside of the North Adams Public School system or its "feeder schools" may not participate without special permission. An important factor to keep in mind is that parts are not necessarily given out in order of how "talented" a student is or if it's her "turn" to have a part. Some very talented students may graduate without ever having had a leading role.

In addition, I take the following into consideration:

1. I don't usually give any actor the lead role in more than one or two full-length productions.

2. I rarely give a major part to a student that has never been in a Drama Team production. Auditions for leads in a November production are usually held between April and June.

3. I invite Drama Team alumni and others to be a part of our productions. I occasionally invite students from feeder schools and home schoolers to be involved in our productions.

Casting a Production

The Drury Drama Team has achieved a national reputation and has received local and national awards for its innovative educational theatre programming and willingness to tackle plays that address difficult sociological problems that are important to young men and women.

Our major productions have been serious and usually important works from a wide selection of theatrical genres that are selected for their ability to challenge our cast and audiences. Many of our full-length plays are standard fare in English classes at Drury High School. I attempt to select large-cast, important dramatic and comedic literature with engaging plots and themes. Plays of this nature may include phrases, actions and subject material that may not be suitable for young children or the easily offended. A partial list of our plays may be seen above.

The one-act plays and monologues that I select cover a broad spectrum of genres, historical periods, and subject material. Some pieces are from well-known plays. Others are original. These plays and monologues are carefully selected to help the student develop their skills and insure that all students in the Theatre Arts class have an opportunity to perform. If a student does not like a monologue assigned to them, he or she may submit another for approval by the teacher. Some of the many subjects touched upon by these shorter plays include prejudice, juvenile delinquency, drug abuse, homophobia, teenage pregnancy, and child abuse.

Parents are requested to read scripts of plays that we are planning to stage. Once a student accepts a role in a play, he or she is required to be present at all rehearsals and performances. Failure to do so will affect everyone else working hard on the production.

All students are not required to be involved in all plays except for the November productions. All students will be involved in the November production either in a dramatic or technical role or both. If, however, a student for whatever reason does not attend classes, leaves classes early, or is not involved in multiple plays, he or she may be asked to drop the class. In theatre class, the students learn together while doing. Very rarely is a "make up" possible.

Play Selection

Grading for Theatre Arts is based on performance on stage, class participation, preparation, papers, projects, tests, homework, tech job, final exam, attendance, critiques, and team effort. Performance on stage is composed of 40 grades in various areas of theatre. Grades for all students in all Drury courses are listed on the Drury web site. The Drama Team is an academic course at Drury High School. Class is every Monday until 3:30. Students that leave early or are absent for non-excused reasons will get a "0" in that class. Cheating will result in failure. Plagiarism is cheating. In the general Theatre Arts class, the breakdown of grades are as follows: 35% participation, 35% assignments, and 30% assessments.

Students are expected to maintain at least a "B" average in order to be allowed to travel on the road with the Team and to continue as a student in our theatre courses. Admission into the course is NOT automatic. Students are re-admitted into the course each year and at each marking period only with permission of Dr. Radin. They will be re-admitted only if they have shown to be a conscientious member of the Team. This includes attending rehearsals and helping to create a pleasant learning environment for the Drama Team. Students that consistently abrogate their responsibility, miss rehearsals, or show disregard for their teammates will be dropped from the team. Students must maintain an "A" average to be considered for the honor course in theatre.

Grading

Drama Team plays are a team effort. The Drama Team has attained a national reputation for excellence only because every member of the Team did his or her best. Remember that everyone on the Team is counting on you to carry out your technical job and dramatic role with creativity and enthusiasm. Your job will be done only if you do it.

I promise to do everything that I possibly can do to attend all rehearsals. I promise to seek out ways to do my tech job as completely and creatively as I possibly can. I understand that a grade of B in both my tech grade and drama grade is necessary to maintain my membership in the Team. I also understand that a grade of at least 80 is necessary to earn Thespian points and the privilege of going to Thespian regional and international festivals. I understand that to earn a passing grade on my technical job I must to the following:

1. Come to all assigned rehearsals on time with my part memorized and stay to the end of the rehearsals and Monday class. My parents and I understand that the class ends at 3:25 on Monday, not at 2:30. In other words, school ends for me at 3:25 on Mondays. If I leave early, I am leaving before the end of school. The parts assigned in June must be memorized by September 1. Minor parts assigned in September must be memorized by Friday, September 18. Major parts assigned in September must be memorized by October 1.

2. Attempt to solve all problems as maturely as possible and refrain from excessive complaining or negative attitudes.

3. Understand that I am working on a Team and will help my teammates to the best of my ability. Once I accept a job or dramatic role I will carry it through to completion. Not doing this hurts all on the team.

4. Ask others how I may help.

5. Give written reports on progress of my tech job to Doc on dates stipulated in my tech job directions.

6. Raise a minimum of $50 by selling VIP tickets and ads.

7. Complete my tech job by the deadline.

8. Take care of my own costume and props. After each performance, place props and costume in their proper place.

9. Do not wait until there are only a few weeks left to solve problems. By then it may be too late and people may be too busy at the last minute to help.

Signed_____________________________

Date_______________________________

We, the parents of __________________, have had the opportunity to read the policies, have seen the schedule for this play, and know the content of this play. We understand that Theatre at Drury is an academic subject and full attendance is mandatory. We understand that missing rehearsals or performances or not carrying out tech jobs fully may result in being dropped from the Team and earning a failure in the academic subject of theatre. We understand that once an actor accepts a part, it is their responsibility to carry it through to completion. We promise to help our son/daughter attend all rehearsals and performances. We will allow our child to complete his/her obligation to the Team for any play they are committed to.

Signed______________

The Contract

Awards

The Drury Drama Team promotes skills and knowledge of theatre arts and encourages personal growth and creative thought in its members through educational theatre. The Team also entertains and educates its audiences with plays of many periods and genres.

Membership

Enrollment into our Drury High School theatre courses requires permission of Dr. Radin. Among the factors I consider is the capability of working productively in an ensemble and the ability and desire to risk sharing with the audience. Temporary enrolment may be given for students to start the class during the year, but a full audition will be required before enrolling for the following year. Membership may be conferred by outstanding performance in our monologue presentation. Students earning below a B may not be permitted to continue in Drama Team classes for subsequent marking periods or participate in field trips such as the International Thespian Festival.

The International Thespian Society is the honor society of educational theatre. Our troupe number is 5135. Drury students in grades 9-12 may become members of our Thespian Troupe by earning the proper number of Thespian points. Students of Drury or its feeder school may become members of the Team with permission of Dr. Radin.

Theatre arts at Drury is an academic class. Full attendance for classes and rehearsal is required. Exceptions for illness and family emergencies may be allowed with prior notification. Students may not leave until 3:30 on Monday and the end of rehearsals unless prior arrangements are made at least a day in advance. Students will be marked, "absent" if not present in class at 3:30 or the end of each rehearsal. Each Monday class represents an entire week of classes. Students will not get credit for work that is not done as the result of absence. Make up work is not always possible due to the nature of our classes. Much of the work involves the entire class working together. Leaving class or rehearsal early disrupts others and will be reflected on the student's report card. If a student misses much work due to absence, they may possibly be dropped from the program. A student may elect to take theatre for one semester instead of an entire year if that is arranged in advance.

Vision

We see a legacy of alumni who were significantly affected in a very real, very positive way through their association with the Team. We see audiences that were moved by our efforts.

We respect our students’ privacy. No personal information such as phone number, address, or e-mail is listed on our web site. We consult the privacy lists generated each year by Drury. Any student or parent/guardian may request that no photos of that student be displayed on the web site. We will be glad to remove any photos and/or name of a particular Drury student from the site if requested by the student or parent.

We are gay friendly and welcome students from a wide variety of backgrounds. We celebrate diversity

We embrace diversity.

Perhaps it's art,

perhaps family,

definitely educational theatre

and absolutely magic.