Too Cool for School

Only the First Day!

Today was my first day of teaching, and we still haven’t chosen a play yet. It will be performed in about eight weeks, whatever it is. I am not directing it. We’ve looked at everything, it seems, and were about to settled on Dearly Departed when we realized that we’d be making a huge social commentary on the town we just moved to, when all they’ve ever done before were classics. (sigh) We just don’t know what to choose. It needs to be a comedy, but we are looking at Golden Boy by Clifford Odets, which is one of those edgy realism plays from the Federal Theatre Project. Not too funny, but compelling. We’re also thinking about The Crucible. Talk about not funny! We can’t find anything that really compels us, Tempa and I, and I think that she is starting to give up hope. Not me, though. Everything is brand new here, and I’ll take any artistic project I can get my hands on. I may regret claiming that, but I’m hungry for some kind of far-away play, the kind you only learn about in theatre History or hear that Steppenwolf is doing in their season.

Oh yeah! I taught today. Well it felt like just another day at CATS, only longer, and with more papers to keep up with. Me, up in front of the kids, fighting for their attention, their respect, and their minds. Tomorrow, I don’t think I will fight so hard. After all, learning is in their hands. I’m utterly spent. It’s 9:00 and I’m going to bed.

Love always,
Heather

posted by Heather at 8/22/2005