Speaking in Draft is an interview series in which Intermission staff writer Nathaniel Hanula-James speaks with some of the artistic voices shaping Canadian theatre today. In a mixture of lighthearted banter and deep dives into artistic practice, this column invites artists to share nascent manifestoes, ask difficult questions, and throw down the gauntlet at the feet of a glorious, frustrating art form.
I shudder to think how I might’ve turned out if not for my high school drama teachers. There was Peter Beharry, who would often declare that “the object of this game is to win!” but gave every student a passing grade, as long as they had the courage to get up onstage at least once. There was David Nicks, who might begin class with an update on the Dostoevsky novel he was reading, or by teaching us the word “scrofulous,” before launching us into an Uta Hagen sense memory exercise. Both of these teachers taught me a lifetime’s worth of valuable lessons — yes, about theatre, but also about humour, humility, honesty, and discipline.
I suspect that most people who work in theatre professionally, and many who don’t, have a story about a high school drama teacher who changed their lives. This edition of Speaking in Draft is a celebration of those figures. With the help of the education departments at Tarragon Theatre and Young People’s Theatre, as well as colleagues Karen Fricker and Michelle MacArthur, I connected with four wonderful educators from around the GTA. In a conversation at the end of the school week, they shared their thoughts on why everyone can benefit from a theatre education, now more than ever.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Can you share where you teach, and your current position?
Colin MacLellan (CM): I teach at Albert Campbell Collegiate. I was a department head for a long time, but now I just teach drama, and more drama, and all the drama! The social justice ethos at Campbell comes from the drama department and I’m very proud of that.
Payge Mildebrath (PM): I currently teach at Kipling Collegiate in Etobicoke. I’m head of the arts department here. Fun fact, Colin was my associate teacher when I was a student teacher in the drama classroom. So, talk about full circle.
Naguib Keval (NK): I’ve worked with Colin before through [the education program] East of Tarragon. I’m the current head of drama at Milliken Mills High School in Markham. I came into teaching by accident. I was in the theatre program at York, and a professor asked if I wanted to help out with some kids. I got invited to Westview Secondary and I was tossed into a class. Immediately, that ability to get into teaching mode was there [for me].
Aruna Bhalla (AB): I’m teaching drama at Alexander Mackenzie in Richmond Hill. I actually graduated from teacher’s college last April, and I’m very lucky that I got a permanent position in September. Especially in drama, it’s not easy!
What’s the biggest joy or challenge that each of you finds in your work?
AB: The biggest joy is seeing students discover their voices — literally and figuratively. It’s powerful to see young people take creative risks, collaborate with their peers, and surprise themselves with what they’re capable of doing. The biggest challenge, I find, is advocating for arts education in a system that often prioritizes other subjects over creative expression.
CM: I’ve been at a school that values arts education and it’s a wonderful thing. Aruna, this is your first year and this is my 30th year — I’ve had 25 years at the same school year, and I’m not kidding, they throw money at me. I hope you can remain optimistic that [the valuing of the arts] will come.
PM: There’s nothing like the post-show high. That’s where I find the most pride: watching students who, in my program’s case, are mostly from immigrant families and have never done theatre before in their lives, shine on stage and realize: ‘Oh, this is actually kind of fun. All those months of grueling rehearsal were worth it.’ Pushing them through that process is the biggest challenge sometimes. But once you’re able to build up a program where students realize, ‘this is worth it and we can create quality work,’ and then get the support, whether that’s financial or otherwise, then you’re flying high. It’s amazing what you can build from there.
NK: One of the best things you learn in drama is collaboration. At the end of every single one of my classes, every kid can walk out of that class and name everybody who was in that classroom, and they’ve had a chance to work with everybody there. Many years later, what students will remember is that show they were in. They won’t necessarily remember that essay that they had to do in history, but they’ll remember those experiences. I think that’s the greatest thrill: shaping those lifelong lessons that they’ll take into their futures.
What makes theatre education valuable for kids, whether or not they want to be professional artists?
NK: After [students] graduate, they come back and they say that empathy was one of the most important skills they took away. It makes them better people in society.
PM: What I consider my role to be is really empowering students, to understand that their stories matter and deserve to be heard. The drama classroom and the theatre are really wonderful platforms to share those stories in creative, moving ways.
AB: Not only am I students’ mentor and advocate, but I also feel as if I’m their biggest cheerleader. For a lot of students, the drama room is a comfortable space where they’re able to talk about things that maybe they’re not comfortable discussing with their other peers or other teachers. I encourage them to explore not only who they are, but what they want to say through theatre. It’s a great opportunity to talk about taboo topics. I want them to feel like they belong, not only in the classroom, but also in this world, if they’re willing to take risks and just play. No matter where they end up, I think it’s important for them to be lifelong learners of the arts, even if it’s something that they might not pursue professionally.
CM: As Aruna said, the drama department is where students feel safe. There are artifacts of social justice and inclusion and belonging all around. We have a pride flag in every room in the classroom. Over the course of my day, I’ll probably have 20 to 30 kids drop in to get a granola bar, to borrow Chromebooks, or because they’re having a rough time. There’s a chair in my office with a stuffie on it that a former student left. It’s a Build-A-Bear stuffie with a pride flag that says “you’re loved and welcome here.” If they’re not loved at home, they come to us to be loved. And if they’re not included somewhere else, they come to us to be included.
PM: It’s no surprise that at my school, every one of the arts teachers is also the staff advisor for the GSA. Our hub is the drama room. It’s just naturally that space.
NK: I remember other teachers saying, ‘There are always kids in that room. What’s going on in that room?’ I say, ‘well, it’s because they feel safe.’ On a school level, it allows drama teachers to really gauge the zeitgeist of what’s happening in the school, because a lot of times those students will share what is happening in the larger student body. Then we can actually approach and say, okay, well, if X, Y, and Z is happening and you feel this is a real concern, we can [advocate for you]. It’s a safe space, and students take ownership and pride in that. One of the things I find is that they become advocates in the school as well.
PM: In preparation for this, I was reviewing some of my students’ reflections from over the years. The ongoing theme is self-confidence: ‘I was able to do things I never thought I was going to do and take risks I never thought I could take.’ I’ll never forget experiences where other staff or students have come up to me and said, ‘Payge, this student that has a special education need, and that struggles in all of these classes, was shining on stage. How did you do that?’ I tell them it wasn’t me at all. It’s this natural organic process for students to build self-confidence, and to thrive in a way that they often don’t in other areas of a school.
NK: Specifically at my school, we’ve had a lot of multi-language learners. English is not their first language. One student told me that drama class is where they’re enjoying picking up the language because they can test it with their peers, not through a textbook or grammar sheet. It starts to show them that they’re valued, that language isn’t a barrier to what they can achieve in class; and then that confidence becomes contagious in their other courses.
CM: We have a large ESL drama program, and kids go through that into the core program. They can present a scene in their own language if they want. I love the fact [that in drama] we have no curriculum to speak of. I don’t think a science class does either, by the way! But we have even less of a curriculum in that regard. And since there’s no entry or exit point, we always work with kids from wherever they are and just move them up.
AB: We’re increasingly behind screens. Drama is a really great place for us to be present in the moment. We get to listen deeply and engage with the work. Some of my students had conversations coming up with post-secondary programs, and they were really focused on what the questions were and how to have the right answers. I said, ‘Just be yourself. They want to see you. They want to work with someone who is kind. They want to work with someone who works well with others’ — all these skills that you learn in drama like collaboration, teamwork, problem-solving.
How has your approach to teaching changed over your careers? Or, if you’re relatively new to teaching, is there a challenge you’re conscious of facing as you enter the field?
CM: In my classroom, we can talk about social media and we can talk about devices. Unfortunately, so many are still addicted. But drama class is the time of day where students can get rid of their device, and interact, and be with people. It’s so valuable. Some get it, some don’t.
AB: I think having those open conversations with students about [technology in the classroom] and building that rapport early on is so important. It’s a huge distraction, unfortunately.
PM: Pre-pandemic, there was a lot of focus on incorporating technology and all of these new innovative ways to teach in any classroom, including the arts classroom. But since COVID, it’s like — strip it down. We’re going back to the basics, literally the basics of how to greet someone when they walk into a room. When I go into most classrooms, students are just on their phones and there’s no hello. Honestly, you can almost see students relax more in drama class because there’s permission to put the device away — as Aruna said, to just be present in the moment.
NK: When I have supply teachers come in, they’re anticipating that students will be locked in and quiet, but [then I get these notes saying] ‘Oh my god, they’re talking all the time!’ I’m like, ‘It’s a drama class!’ It’s actually a gift that they’re talking to each other and engaging.
CM: I have a teaching website with all my stuff 1747158048. Whenever my kids go to it, learning is only one tab of the menu. There’s queer and trans resources. There’s wellness. There are my course profiles. It’s a great tool for students if they want to go deeper.
I have to ask — do you have a favourite theatre game that you do with your classes?
AB: I did one today which the grade 10s love. It’s called Hot Seat. This class is extremely strong in improv and they love thinking on their feet. I split this class in half, and each student gets an opportunity to be in ‘the hot seat’ [as a character from the play we’re working on]. I got the students to write down specific questions for that character. It’s their favourite game.
PM: I design all my games so that no one can get [eliminated]. There are other ways that we can be competitive. [One warm-up game that I love] is You. It’s adaptable to any unit or skill. You’re in a circle, you point at someone and you say ‘you,’ and you walk towards them. And before you reach them, that person has to point at someone different and say ‘you.’ So everyone’s always crossing and moving. I’ve done it where you add emotions, and you have to move and embody and speak as that emotion. Or I did it in a commedia dell’arte unit, choosing a commedia stock character and moving as them.
CM: The first thing I do in drama is, I disrupt their idea of what games are, because we’re not playing soccer. I do a great game where I put them all on chairs: there are about five groups of four students on three chairs each. They have to go from one room to the next room without touching the ground. When one group gets to the end, I say, ‘I never said it was a race. The goal is for us all to get to the next room. That team is there first, but nobody else is. So help them.’ They work together right? It’s always about cooperation.
NK: One game that I wanted to share is called Yay and Boo. It’s a game that teaches clowning. One student goes out of the room. The rest of the class determines three tasks that the individual has to do when they come back into the room. It could be that they have to go sit on a particular chair, or do push-ups, or something. The only way the class can communicate to them what to do is to cheer them on or boo them. The closer the student gets to doing it, the more the intensity builds up. Language is not a barrier because it’s just ‘yay!’ and ‘boo!’ We talk about the fact that even when you’re wrong, it’s right, because it’s so much fun watching you try to problem-solve.
PM: You’ve created that environment where taking risks is acceptable, and you’re also showing students that it’s never done. You can keep moving and shaping and trying new things and flipping them on their head — and here’s the space to do it.
WRITTEN BY
Nathaniel Hanula-James
Nathaniel Hanula-James is a multidisciplinary theatre artist who has worked across Canada as a dramaturg, playwright, performer, and administrator.
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