'What's In a Name?"
I found, when deciding my recognition awards, that the name of the award really did matter. "Best Actor" did not send the message I wanted to the students or parents. I also wanted to recognize more than just acting talent. The success of any program is often due in large part to the commitment of numerous chorus members, not on the backs of one or two leads. The awards in earned in my program are...
The Commitment to Excellence Medallion
All inducted 8th graders can earn this medallion by being active members in their final year of the program. At our ceremony, these 8th graders give a short speech on what being part of our Drama program has meant them. Their speeches are always the heart of our ceremony, speaking to parents and underclassman about the importance of creating friendships, embracing the "chorus" role, accepting being cut sometimes, and developing confidence.
Dedication to Drama
This award recognizes any student who has been a part of all 8 of our productions throughout their Middle School career. As an actor or as a crew member, this dedication is what builds a successful program, and it needs to be celebrated. This also gives my little 5th graders something to aspire to earn, even before being able to be inducted in 6th grade. In my 8 years running our troupe, only 8 students have earned this award (two of the years had no one). Whether the lead or chorus, acting or crew, students who are dedicated to every production create the backbone of a strong program.
Spirit of the Stage
Let's be honest, not all of our students are amazingly talented. Most of mine have big hearts, big energy, and big dreams...but in the talent category, they fall a little short. This award recognizes the student who makes your production successful through the skills of enthusiasm, teamwork, leadership, effort, and focus. This student works hard every rehearsal, makes friends with all the cast members (not just the ones in their grade), and is a joy to be around (even in tech week). Being the most talented is not one of the requirements. Instead, this awards celebrates the student who embodies the true spirit of a passionate thespian who loves the craft!
Thespian of the Year
Of course, I do recognize talent. Plain and simple, you don't get to be a talented Middle School thespian without putting forth your best effort every day. Needing to be part of both productions in the school year, this award challenges our students to never settle for "good enough," but to always strive for greatness. Besides the trophy, the Thespian of the Year, gets their name of a plaque that hangs in our Drama room next to our Charter and membership Roll. The names that grace the plaque are students who have moved on to our high school and thrived in the program. In fact, our first Thespian of the Year just went to college two years ago to a very prestigious theatre program, and came back to talk at our ceremony, encouraging our Middle School thespians to stay committed and passionate to theatre. Very touching and powerful!
I hope this helps and gets everyone thinking about what message of the names of their awards are sending. Ask yourself what traits your program wants to build, then recognize and celebrate them! Our program honors dedication and commitment...it is through these qualities that I feel strong, confident, passionate thespians are created. Best of luck with your program and troupe!
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Adam Moreno
Middle School Drama and Dance Teacher
University School of Milwaukee
Milwaukee WI
amoreno@usmk12.org Twitter - @USMDrama
Instagram - usmdrama
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Original Message:
Sent: 06-06-2014 23:34
From: Jeffrey Davis
Subject: Awards
My school also has a senior awards night. When I got here 9 years ago (Yikes!) I was expected to give out best actor and actress, tech supporting actor & actress. I did not like being limited to 5 (only 1 tech), and I really did not like declaring someone best actor. So I changed that, now I give out awards - to as many as I feel deserve - it all of which are for "outstanding contributions to Drama Club". Generally I give out between 6 to 8, to whatever seniors I feel (on either side of the curtain) went over and above throughout their time with me. I am the one who decides who gets the awards (mainly because that was the setup when I got here). I like that because I see the kids often go with popularity. That said, my parent group has the kids vote for two seniors every year for the "unsung hero" award. They list all the seniors and tell them they need to pick one techie and one actor/actress who maybe never has the lead but who contributes greatly. Most years the kids do a good job of putting the popularity aspect aside - though there have been a few times where they clearly went with the person they liked best over the person who truly deserved it.
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Jeffrey Davis
Plainsboro NJ
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Original Message:
Sent: 06-05-2014 00:19
From: Tim Brown
Subject: Awards
For several years I have considered rethinking how I handle awards. And I would love some ideas. Right now, everyone who is an active member votes on all performance awards, even if they haven't seen all shows. This leads me to two questions: what awards are others actually giving out and how do you choose who gets them? I have considered selecting a group of adults and/or students who are not being voted upon to commit to seeing every show and choosing the winners, such as happens at state competition. But perhaps I need to rethink what awards I am giving out (best actor, best actress, best techie, etc.) and/or rethink how this is decided (based on points perhaps). Thanks for the ideas!
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Tim Brown
Greenville SC
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