“Being involved in the arts makes students well-rounded,” said Regina Christienson, Iola High’s new drama and speech teacher.
Whether it be learning to speak comfortably before large crowds, being able to appreciate the works of great art, music or theater, or seeing the role art plays in creative thinking, students who have a background in the arts are able to take myriad career paths, she said.
Just north of two months into her position, Christienson, 25, is already helping students find the confidence to express themselves in ways they might not have previously.
“Drama is supposed to be fun and I make it fun,” said the Colby native, who spent last year teaching English at IHS.
IHS sophomore Alanna Knavel said in the little time she’s spent in Christienson’s Beginning Drama class, she’s already noticed a few of her classmates come out of their shell, getting enthusiastic about class.
“There are a few guys that usually aren’t as fun, but in this class they do some pretty cool stuff,” she said.
Teaching six classes — three speech sections, two drama classes and a leadership class — Christienson said whenever possible she allows the students to choose the day’s exercises and activities to get them more engaged and make learning more enjoyable. Being new to her position, Christienson said lends itself to that cause.
“Just because you’re a senior and that’s the only way you’ve done things throughout high school doesn’t mean that’s the way we have to keep doing it. I want it to be up to them,” she said. “I want them to be excited about it.”
Knavel, an actress in the Iola Community theater’s performance of “My Son Pinocchio,” said the drama class is exactly what the doctor ordered for an Iola girl aspiring for stardom.
“Over the summer I found out I could actually act and I thought it would be cool to find out what drama was really all about,” she said. “I’ve always been interested in the arts, but this really helped me figure out that I really want to do something in the arts.”
But it’s not just students with an active interest in the arts Christienson hopes to impact. As a drama and speech teacher, she said it’s just as meaningful, if not more so, to see a student with no previous interest in fine arts contribute to a stage performance.
“Students who go out on the football field every Friday night and are sweating and bleeding for Iola High School and then go on stage and perform in front of everyone, that makes them such well-rounded people,” she said. “It gives them an appreciation of a lot of different things.”
The theater industry involves many roles — from the thespians in stage to the ushers — any student can get involved, she said.
“I might have a senior who is never, ever going to be on stage in their life, nor do they want to. But make whatever it is fun for him. Maybe it’s building sets. Or maybe there’s a girl who is shy … and is wonderful at sewing. She can make costumes.
“It’s all about finding what they do well and applying it to theater,” she added. “Somehow, you can always find a place for someone in the theater.”
ROUNDING A GENERATION
