posted
I am in Drama club at an IB high school. In my school district, there are several schools with special programs vying for attention. Currently, the golden school is a Drama school.
Recently, a kid transferred from this school to mine. He's a good guy and a friend of my girlfriend's since childhood. Now, this school has a very good reputation they like to protect. In other words, if you say anything bad about it, you're declared anathema. Now that he's out, he decided to go to the local news.
The main issue is in initiations, the catch-phrase of all school scandals lately. His was pretty awful, but not the worst (he was knocked down and had weights thrown on his back). Others were very graphically sexual, especially for girls, apparentley. You get initiated when you get into one of the drama/musical/dance shows.
He did go to administration, which promised action and then . . . did nothing. Boys will be boys, of course. I don't think they knew about the sexual abuse, though it seems the directors did. And the directors most certainly knew about the psychological abuse, considering they were at the root of most of it (Imagine, if you will, being told you'd never make show because you're "too fat to be on my stage").
Embezzlement was an issue too. This is harder to prove, and probably will get little more than a passing mention. However: apparentley, that's why the previous director was fired. He made generous gifts to the principal's family, though, while dipping into the obscenely large performing arts fund.
I'm busy advising middle schoolers who I know are hoping to go to this school not to. Because even if this goes through and the responsible individuals are fired and punished, it's a poisonous environment. You're afraid you won't make show. Performing arts are the big thing, so there's incredible ammoutns of rather cruel stress. Anything you do wrong--you won't make show. And of course the golden kids, the perrenial leads--they can do anything. And you don't do anything against them because, well, you might not make show. And if you never make show, you'll be an utter failure in life. Besides the fact such actions will earn you universal hate.
On the plus side, he did get out. And he did speak out. And he praised our school, our drama program, and our current play in his talk-y thingie. And a lot of those victims of the school have left that place.
If you live in Cobb county GA, watch channel 2 news tonight at 11. If it happens as promised, a report should aire this early. If not, I'll keep up with what's going on.
God, I almost went to that school.
Posts: 1735 | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
That's sad, but now that the truth is out, the world will come down on that school like a ton of bricks and change will happen.
It's odd because drama types are the last people in the world that I would expect to do something this cruel. Pettiness, sure. But not physical torment. Normally the arts encourages the growth of empathy in people.
Posts: 13123 | Registered: Feb 2002
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posted
Hmm. I have to say drama types are *exactly* the type I'd expect it from! In theatre 'ya gotta be cool', right. Even if being cool means beating on the littler people. That's what made the people who beat you up when you got there cool, right? Bullying makes the bulliers look and feel better. Theatre people are in constant need of reaffirmation of their own self-worth because it's such a field of constant rejection and a field where appearances and reputation and social worth mean a LOT. That's how they sell things, so that's how they pick what to sell.
I don't mean everyone who does drama fits in this "theatre people" stereotype, incidentally. But there's a lot.
Posts: 624 | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
The performance world is fraught with competative nastiness. Empathy for others, yes, but where the gold medal is a stake, corruption and cruelty are not at all uncommon.
It's one of the reason I left the competative singing scene- I wasn't playing that game, and I didn't want to put myself on the level with those that were.
Posts: 8473 | Registered: Apr 2003
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posted
The awful thing is this school is touted as the only place for someone aspiring to performing arts, while there are other places where they teach you and actually help you. This guy said our drama was an incredible change from that place (which means we're not allowed to complain our directors are harsh anymore, of course).
I'm e-mailing some middle school teachers I know who also very much praise the school. Watch the news, watch the news.
Posts: 1735 | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
Astaril, Theatre Types most defiantly aren't that kind. I've grown up working in theatres, and my income is from theatre work that I do. Trust me the only theatre people who are condescending are either those who have no talent and know it, or professionals that have been stars for 20+ years who are out of touch with reality. I have toured with big named rock-bands, musicals, and plays.... People just don't care if they are cool or not, because they know how cool they are based on the audience...
And Astaril, out of curiosity, what kind of experience do you have with any kind of theatre?
Posts: 1094 | Registered: Mar 2004
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posted
Not all theatre types, no, as I said. I've worked with a good many pleasant people too.
I was referring mostly to those likely to be at this school, or in another similarly focussed place. Young, trying to get a start (which often feels like it's do or die NOW and if you miss this chance, you'll never make it), still undergoing teenage emotional stress which is hard enough for teens under no pressure like this at all, not as likely to question why beating someone else makes you cool but just accepting it, etcetera. In university/college theatre programmes this seems to continue too.
Once you hit the real pro racket perhaps, or in the amateur (but non-school) racket (where most of my experience is lately) things maybe brighten up a bit. People either are already good and know it or know they don't have to be to get a part, respectively. In that middle ground though, there's a heck of a lot of do-whatever-it-takes-to-get-"in". Particularly if this is one's lifetime dream, they're likely to do cruel things to achieve it. Once they get a start (perhaps like most of the pro's you may have worked with?) they might be more likely to go back to being less pretentious/condescending/etc.
As for my experience, I was trying desperately at the end of high school to get into one of afore-mentioned programmes and spoke with a LOT of people there already. Some of them were honest about the brutal emotional/social aspect of it. Some of them didn't have to be... I also was in Drama in University my first year and witnessed this type of culture first-hand. I have a lot of friends still in it, here and in drama programmes abroad and even other performance programmes like music where it's much the same. Now, I mostly do a lot of work with community theatre, and some independent stuff.
Posts: 624 | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
They just ran clips from his interview. Oh, and get this: the school sent home letters saying students engaged in "various degrees of horseplay". Followed immediately by a clip in which he describes the more brutal hazings.
Anyways, it looks like they're suing the school and the individuals responsible. He didn't tell us this, but the news report said they've got an attorney lining up a case now.
Wow. When I'm seeing all this and hearing these stories, I'm suddenly very proud of the Drama Geeks I know.
Posts: 1735 | Registered: Oct 2004
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quote: Young, trying to get a start (which often feels like it's do or die NOW and if you miss this chance, you'll never make it), still undergoing teenage emotional stress which is hard enough for teens under no pressure like this at all, not as likely to question why beating someone else makes you cool but just accepting it, etcetera.
Astaril.... I'm 17. I work at Indiana University, I volunteer at my high school and I use to tour with shows.... I don't know how long you've hung around Hatrack, but making generalizations doesn't win any popularity contests around here, and often times... It just pisses people off.... Theatre people and teenagers alike are more often than not good people. of course there is always a bad apple or two here and there... but thats about it...
Posts: 1094 | Registered: Mar 2004
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posted
No, I never meant theatre groups or teenagers were mostly bad! I entirely agree they're both much more likely to hold good people than bad. I only meant that among the groups of people that do exist who *are* bullying and harmfully competitive like that, a competitive programme like theatre or music or something performance related (where the programme and people running it can make it seem like it should be your only goal in life) is the type of place where social pressure to be accepted is likelier to become high enough lead to a new level of cruelty . It *is* easier and more common to be less self-confident and less sure of oneself the younger one is (I didn't indicate it stops at teenage years in theatre either - the university programmes and beyond can be quite similar) and being self-conscious is often a large factor in bullying and putting fellow competititors down. Of course, there are plenty of confident teens out there too, but on the whole, it is physically and emotionally a trying time through most cultures in the world. And so those pressures combined with pressures from a competitive school could make for a more likely environment of selfish mentality.
I'm sorry to have offended you. I never intended to generalize or imply all or most theatre and or young people are like this. I suppose I should have made that clearer. I meant there just seems to be correlations between some ideas more likely to be held among those two types of groups, among others.
Posts: 624 | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
The unique thing about theatre is that the only thing you have to sell yourself is, well, yourself. The impression that people have of you is vital to getting a job/part and putting food on the table. In a business that is so personal and subjective in nature it's unsurprising that people in it are so vicious and personal in their attacks on each other. I am utterly unsurprised that this type of activity happened in a theatre community. It establishes a hierarchy that is so ingrained in the profession and/or emotionally shatters the person and removes them from competition.
And it is more likely to occur to teens because older people are less likely to allow themselves to be subjected to such treatment. You're more comfortable with yourself, you have a greater understanding for how wrong it is and what your rights are, you're world has grown and you realize that you're not so reliant on this small, insular community, etc. Again, not to say that it is unique to teens/early university, but I'd certainly posit that it's for more likely.
Don't get me wrong on this point though: people are out to ruin others in every profession. But this type of hazing isn't found in, say, science both because it's unlikely for an opportunity to arise and because it wouldn't impact their ability to do science and achieve published success. The things we scientists do to each other are no less career destroying, but the buffer between your work and your person tends to make them less soul destroying.
Posts: 3243 | Registered: Apr 2002
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posted
I'm dying to know what school, since I'm from that area. Joldo, could you email me with it, if you're unwilling to post it here?
Posts: 4077 | Registered: Jun 2003
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quote:The unique thing about theatre is that the only thing you have to sell yourself is, well, yourself. The impression that people have of you is vital to getting a job/part and putting food on the table. In a business that is so personal and subjective in nature it's unsurprising that people in it are so vicious and personal in their attacks on each other.
Oh, hey, look at that... *there's* the point I was originally trying to make, only much better phrased... Posts: 624 | Registered: Mar 2005
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