Those teachers who stick with you, even years after you have them in class. Every time you pull out the yearbook, you’re instantly flooded with memories once you come across their picture on the faculty page.
These teachers didn’t just teach you what was in the syllabus. They taught you life lessons too. Lessons that stick with you for years after graduation. The very fact that you can recall these teachers shows the enormous impact that they had on you.
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Reading this article made me very nostalgic for working with my theater teacher, even though the last time we collaborated was only less than a year ago. Reading this article just reinforced how lucky we are to have caring teachers in our lives, like even moving away from theater teachers, they really do help challenge students to develop their interests and learning, in ways that we can't do ourselves. My theater teacher helped me come out of my shell and push myself in artistic ways, whether it be as a designer, a manager, an actor, or a director. Sometimes my theater teacher, who I am keeping unnamed, saw potential in me that I didn't even see in myself. I've only ever really had one significant theater teacher, and sometimes I questioned his judgment or choices, but he also provided me with some strong life advice. He would always let me come sit in his office when I had a break just to talk about life, and would recommend me new shows or artists, and he also reminded me that it's good to have fun and not be too serious. To be honest, if it wasn't for the influence of my theater teacher I don't think I would have developed enough confidence to even consider technical theater a career choice.
Interestingly, I was actually influenced more by my non theater teachers than those within the program. It always made me deeply uncomfortable the way the head of our tech department interacted with her students, so I've never witnessed or experienced this powerful drama teacher and student relationship. I spent a great deal of high school feeling grossed out by her inappropriate behavior with students, but I did have a few teachers who were influential and important to me. I think that we all have a teacher or two who change our lives and shape who we are, whether that change is good or bad. unfortunately many people have negative experiences, but for those of us with positive experiences it is truly something special and powerful. My senior year my Senior Lit teacher gave me the space I needed to process what I was going through in my life, and it's one of the most powerful experiences I've ever been through. As someone who hates writing, I had a teacher both change my mind about it and also help me work through something just through writing. These are the kinds of changes good teachers can make to us. It's one of those surreal experiences where you see yourself grow up right before your eyes through the guidance of someone else.
Just like this article says in the very beginning, everyone has one and we all are better people and better artists because they were in our lives. This article points out some of the smaller things that theatre educators instill in us as artists, those things really consist of the building of our attitude and developing a thick skin and some sense of resilience. I’m really happy that I was able to have such a strong theatrical educational experience before I came to Carnegie Mellon because I felt more emotionally prepared for the struggle side of theatre that no one necessarily talks about. The industry isn’t as easy or as fun as the world makes it out to be, and in many ways it isn’t for the light hearted. Being able to constantly lose and keep on getting back up, trying, auditioning, interviewing, and working is at the beating heart of our industry, and without that ability there is only imminent defeat, at least if you’re working in theatre. This article really hit home for me because there is a direct correlation between what I do right now in my professional and personal life and the drama elective I took in the sixth grade.
I think that this article is not just necessarily confined to that of teachers but also to that of mentors. Good mentorship is a very difficult thing to find, and even more difficult to maintain, as for a mentor to be good, they either have to be much more knowledgeable compared to their mentee, or they also have to be constantly learning in order to keep up. However, they also appear relatable and supportive to someone who does not know nearly as much as they do. This may sound easy, but being overly pitiful can quickly drive someone else away. Truthfully I think that parts of this article fall a bit flat and end up coming across a bit generic, as in the end, this is the “Theatre changed my life story” but it focuses on a particular person. And yes, we all have certain people in our lives and out educations who shape how and why we do what we do.
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