Class Plays in a Waldorf School
Why, How You Can Help, and Audience Etiquette
by Ms. Ieeda Banach, 7th Grade Class Teacher
Originally Published April 23, 2023
It is play season at Mountain Song! If you have children in grade 1-8, they will likely be performing a class play soon (or may have already done so). You may have worked with them at home to memorize lines, donated items for props or costumes, called grandparents to invite them, or helped in other ways.
Why?
Why do we have class plays in a Waldorf school? While it certainly is fun to see our children on stage in costume working their way through their lines, is there more to it? Our teachers devote several weeks and lots of energy to help students prepare for a play. What is all that time and effort for?
A primary reason is that each play relates to the students’ curriculum, and they get a chance to embody, and literally play, what they have been learning about this year.
Huckleberry students after their 2024 class play
Plays also provide students huge opportunities for growth and maturity. They work hard to memorize lines, stand in the right place, remember their cues, keep their costume and props organized, and practice every day to get it all in order. When it comes time to perform on stage, so many feelings arise, and then it happens! They go on stage and do their best, and it all comes together! Suddenly all their work and attention becomes clear for the first time. Their families, friends, teachers, and staff members all confirm that they did something big, and they can celebrate knowing that they are capable of big things. Where could they go in their futures knowing that about themselves?
The word is play, and that’s just what the students get a chance to do: play at being someone else, embodying a different time and place. Their character is someone different from them, a role they can live into, feeling and acting differently than they are used to. Play is how we humans, especially children, process and feel into other ways of being. When they get closer to something that is different from them, they also get closer to understanding that time, that place, that culture, that language, and that way of life, feeling more connected to the human experience as a whole.
They may play a villian, a sneak, a hero, a jokester, a good friend, or a brilliant philosopher. Whatever the role, they more fully understand that part of our humanness than they ever could. And what are the possibilities that lie ahead of them when they can understand humanity on a bigger level? How can they bridge gaps in the world, in their relationships with others, in their relationship with themselves?
Finally, they have a chance to build interdependence, working together as a class to support everyone in their role (otherwise the play doesn’t work!). They must look to their classmates to say their lines in order for them to say their own. They must wait until it’s time for their cue - an action from another student on stage, perhaps. They might even need to help a classmate remember a line or an action so the whole thing still works. What can they offer the world when they cultivate this ability to recognize another’s role and listen and wait for the other?
My favorite part of a play is at the end when the students come on stage to take their bows, and the audience cheers for them. It is then that the students will look around at each other for a moment, smiling and laughing, their faces saying, “Wow! We did it! We just made that happen and we did it!” That’s why we do plays in our schools, for that inner experience of themselves, of each other, and of their world!
What Can You Do to Help?
What can you do to help with the process? Ask the teachers if they need help with props, rehearsals, stage hands, or maybe just some words of encouragement and appreciation! Work with students at home (in small increments) to learn their lines or their cues, and check in with them regularly about the process.
And of course, make time to go and see the play. The best gift and most wonderful experience for your student is for them to look out and see your face looking back at them - without anything in between. Just your presence and your attention toward their hard work, and it was all worthwhile!
Ms. Electra Johnson, a MSCS class parent, painting the set
Play Audience Etiquette
We want our students to know they deserve our attention and focus during their performances. It is important to be a thoughtful and respectful audience member for your child and the class, as well as for fellow audience members. Please keep these things in mind when attending a class play:
Turn your cell phones off entirely. Please do not make phone calls or answer texts.
No talking during the performance - if you need to speak with someone on the phone or in person, please leave the room.
When leaving the room, try to step out during a scene change.
Keep young children sitting with you and watching quietly
If your child is upset or unable to sit quietly, please take them out of the room and return when they have returned to a quiet state
Be respectful of the school building and all the property (chairs, tables, play props, etc).
Do not film or take photos during the play. They can be taken afterward. Please be present and enjoy the whole experience.
Please come enjoy your children’s plays! Support them, the class, and the teacher. Offer your full attention to them during the performance itself. We look forward to seeing you there!