Speech and drama students begin drama with a variety of activities

By Brooke Maxson


The 5th hour speech and drama class has proven to be fun-filled for the first six months. First, were the speeches; Even though they were a little nerve-wracking at times, they went well. Next came the debate portion, in which the class got some excellent points across while expressing their opinions on popular issues, some crucial and some not so important. Recently, the class has started drama, which we all know could get to be very funny at times.


Speaking of funny, the first drama-related activity the students participated in was the reading of the play “The Importance of Being Earnest,” by Oscar Wilde The title may not sound extremely appealing when it comes to humor, but being a speech and drama student, I can assure you it is. The play is about two friends who lead double lives. One of the friends, Algernon, gets tired of the endless city events, so he tells people he’s going to visit his ill friend Bunbury in the country, even though Bunbury doesn’t really exist. The same goes for the other friend, Jack when he gets bored with his country life and goes to the city to have fun, claiming he’s going to visit his lonely cousin Earnest. Bunbury and Earnest only exist when the two friends pretend to be them in the city and the country. Complications are inevitable in that case, especially when two young ladies fall for these men and their fake identities. The laugh-out-loud drama continues as Algernon and Jack each try to maintain a relationship with two girls who aren’t aware they’re leading double lives.


According to speech and drama teacher Mr. Bulgrien, he has plans for the rest of the drama portion of this class. Future plans include reading several plays, acting out parts of them, and watching some movies about those plays. The students will also be writing their own plays and performing them. Mr. Bulgrien says he may have the kids write plays and have other students perform them. Another thing the drama students have participated in in the past is a series of games including party quirks, freeze and justify, and Bibbity Bibbity Bop. Some of these games were learned on the speech and drama field trip earlier in the year at Hillsdale College. They’re a super fun way to practice acting and thinking on your feet. Mr. Bulgrien believes the best part about drama is the opportunity to venture into a world other than his own. “(The best part is) just reading the stories and getting to live the stories. It’s kind of cool,” explained Mr. Bulgrien. Although drama is a load of fun most of the time, one of the most important things is participation. Without it, drama can’t exist. “Sometimes if the students don’t want to act or get into it, it really makes it slow. It gets to be a drag,” said Mr. Bulgrien.


The students in this class are saying “so far, so good.” According to several students, the plays are fun to read. “The plays are good so far,” said junior Erica Church. The plays have proven to create many laughs also. “The plays are just hilarious,” said junior Megan Kemmer with a laugh. The decision to take drama class isn’t just based on the desire to have a lot of fun; it may also be beneficial towards one’s plans for the future. “I’ve always liked acting and that’s what my minor is for college,” explained senior Danielle Seabolt. In this class, silliness is expected and usually appreciated by most people of the class. “You can act silly without being made fun of,” said Seabolt.


Taking speech and drama class also requires an ounce of courage and sometimes a little memorization. Of course, where everything good comes along, also comes the bad. “I don’t like being a character in the play,” admitted Church. Memorizing lines and such is also sometimes a drag, but proves to be worth it in the end. “What I don’t like is having to memorize lines and speeches,” said Seabolt.



If you aren’t in drama class this year and you’re also not a senior, maybe you should look into it next year because it could be beneficial towards your future and a lot of fun at the same time. Maybe it’s just what you need to lure you out of your shell and replace your shyness with a courageous and daring attitude.