Southview Theatre Program

Tom Stoppard once wrote, “Because theatre is a story-telling art form, we feel entitled to assume that the playwright got there before we got there.” It amazes me to learn that less than 36% of those students lucky enough to have theatre program elect to participate. Life is told through stories and taught by experience, both fundamentals of the Southview theatre program. Our theatre program has not only taught me how to celebrate and acknowledge differences in people's stories, but how to express my own. I’ve been lucky enough to have been born to parents that, may not always understand me, but support me. However, this was not always the case when it came to school. From the beginning, I was told I didn’t quite learn the same as the other kids in my class. For instance, while they were reading chapters books I was still struggling to tell the difference between the letters “b” and “d”. Besides, with special note cards attached to my desk, I might as well of had an arrow above my head that screamed “tease me,” “easy target,” “dyslexic.” Nevertheless, I fought through it, with years of tutoring and tears I climbed my way to the top. Astoundingly, receiving the highest grade in freshman …show more content…
Theatre had always given me a chance to breathe. No matter how small the part for that moment I could live my life through someone else’s eyes. At the same time, I wanted to live through my own, I wanted to be able to tell my story. I wanted to inspire those like me that anything is possible with hard work. I began to learn how to do just that through those around me. Whether it was rehearsal, I was talking to Miss Shepard or listening to conversations around me, I realized one thing they were never afraid of who they were. That was my key, there was no need to hide that I was dyslexic, that needed to be what motivated me. It taught me that being dyslexic isn’t what controls my story, it isn’t the beginning or the end, it’s simply a