Ask a Watershed School student if he or she has been involved in a theater production and the answer will most likely be yes. At the Watershed School, theater productions are all-school endeavours. From building sets, to acting, playwriting, and directing, students have done it all. English classes collaborate with design classes, students volunteer time out of school in their busy schedules, and teachers and parents work tirelessly to help.   

“Drama, along with fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, is one of the major genres we study in literature, and putting on a play is the best way to really get to know and dig below the surface of drama,” said Brian Boyd, an English and theater teacher at Watershed, a small, independent high school in downtown Camden known for its challenging and passionate academic environment.

Boyd works with students, emphasizing the importance of literary details within a play. At Watershed, he has directed The Importance of Being Earnest, She Stoops to Conquer, and Much Ado About Nothing.   

This semester, Boyd is teaching a theater class with elements of playwriting and production. Students are not only expanding acting skills, but also their writing skills, working to adapt short stories in order to captivate the audience with language and action. In April, the class performed Metamorphoses, a modern play by Mary Zimmerman based on Ovid’s myths.  

The students in the theater class are currently adapting short stories and creating skits, which they will perform on May 29.  

At a school as small as Watershed, producing a play requires creative thinking. There is so much that goes into making a successful performance, that everyone can lend a valuable talent in the production. Theater strengthens the community, requiring students and teachers to work together towards the common goal of producing a play.    

“The small space, small group size, and small budget are actually a boon in many ways because it requires creative problem-solving and cultivates the kind of pride that comes from relying on our own ingenuity and enthusiasm and cooperation to get things done,” said Boyd. “Theater is, I think, the best community-builder there is.”   

There is also an emphasis on public speaking and being a confident presenter.

“Theater helps with confidence, public speaking, and memorization skills,” said Jillian Galloway, a sophomore. “It's satisfying to be able to lead an audience through a scene, by using your voice and character.”   

Ben Moon-Black, a senior who will be attending Kenyon College in the fall, has found his niche in acting and writing. He has performed in four Watershed productions, as well as plays outside of the school.  Jillian and Ben are both taking the playwriting course.  

“I'm not a very thrilling conversationalist,” said Moon-Black.  “I trip over words and stumble over my syntax. Stories run wild and for much too long, and half the time I get lost before I've even begun. So having a very definite, clear-cut series of words to memorize really does help with improving my confidence.”

Although public speaking can be improved through traditional presentations in a classroom setting, performing on stage can be equally as valuable, if not more so. In theater, there are no traditional grades. Having the freedom to convey emotions and actions in different ways can empower students instead of pressuring them to conform to a set way of presenting academic subjects.

“Theater is important because it is an exercise for the soul,” said C Wiley, who has been in two Watershed productions. “It allows me to express a part of myself I didn’t know existed.”

Theater is certainly that for many Watershed students. “Like” Watershed’s Facebook page or visit Watershed’s website if you would like to learn more about what the Theater class is working on.