As the end of senior year nears, I have taken time to reflect on the communities I was a part of, becoming increasingly more grateful for the friends and connections I have made over the past four years. Due to my lack of hand-eye coordination and inability to throw, sports were not my scene. Instead, I found I loved be part of the scene, on stage.
As the youngest sibling, I watched my older sister and brother cycle through the different varsity sports. Tennis, water polo, lacrosse, ultimate Frisbee — there was always some sideline from which to be cheering. They got the typical high school experience, with sweatshirts flashing their number, BHS branded gym bags and poster-filled senior nights.
I was never jealous because sports merch would require me to actually be athletic … and I found that theater was my place.
The people in theater come from all over the school — some athletes, some mathletes and some die-hard Hamilton fans. It’s a unique yet cohesive group of students that I am more than honored to call my friends.
High school, with its emphasis on social conformity, didn’t seem easy for all of the people in theater. Unfortunately, us theater kids still suffer from high school stereotypes. Yes, I can definitely be annoying and obnoxious at times, but it’s not like I’m going to break into a song and dance at any moment’s notice.
Instead, I think of my theater friends to be some of the kindest and most accepting people I have ever known. High school, with its emphasis on social conformity, didn’t seem easy for all of my theater friends.
Recommended for you
But inside the theater, everyone could truly be themselves. Nobody cared who you were friends with or what other extracurriculars you did, because inside the theater, we were all one. Kindness was abundant and there was a overwhelming sense of acceptance.
One of my favorite stories from the theater community is an old stage manager, who used to wear a cape to rehearsals. They didn’t offer an explanation for it, and interestingly enough, nobody asked for one.
The stage manager silently, but intentionally, celebrated diversity and embraced nonconformity in our dramatic arts community. They were an inclusive leader and made everyone, including me, feel comfortable bringing their authentic selves to the theater.
This legacy is secure — every year, a particularly outstanding crew member is awarded the cape as a symbol of their hard work and kindness. It’s been handed down throughout the years and reminds us all to shine brightly in our own way.
I am more than grateful to have been part of such an incredible and inclusive community. I consider the arts to be highly underrated, especially at a high school such as mine that stresses athletics. I would encourage anyone, regardless of who they are and what they identify as, to join the theater community. There is truly a place for everyone, on or off stage.
To support the Burlingame theater community, the last performances of “Into The Woods” will be 7 p.m. Saturday, March 19 and 2 p.m. Sunday, March 20.
Samantha Johnstone is a senior at Burlingame High School. Student News appears in the weekend edition. You can email Student News at news@smdailyjournal.com.
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO
personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who
make comments. Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. Don't threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Anyone violating these rules will be issued a
warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be
revoked.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.