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  • 1.  She Kills Monsters

    Posted 06-22-2023 04:39

    Hello!
    My colleague wants to direct She Kills Monsters with his HS kids next year. He needs information which can help him convince admin that it's a great opportunity for the students and a great production for an audience. Do any of you have anything positive I could possibly share with him?

    Thank you!

    Marta



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    Marta Carvalho
    Drama Director
    Carlucci American International School of Lisbon, Portugal
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  • 2.  RE: She Kills Monsters

    Posted 06-24-2023 01:45

    My students were incredibly invested in this show when I directed it.  We did the Young Adventurers version, for many reasons, chief of which was that the elder sister being only a few years older and still in high school meant that all of the characters were in high school.  There was less potentially objectionable language, and the sexual orientation and/or gender identity of the younger sister was ambiguous.  

    Purely from an artistic standpoint, we had a great deal of fun designing and creating the costumes, and we used only a few platforms for the settings. 

    The end of the show, where Agnes meets the D & D players in person and discovers that they all have challenges from which their play in D & D temporarily releases them, is very moving. 

    The audience seemed to thoroughly enjoy the show, and I received zero complaints.     



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    CJ Breland
    Retired Theatre Arts Educator
    NC
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: She Kills Monsters

    Posted 06-25-2023 10:50

    The strongest theme of SKM is the importance - the necessity -  of listening to teens, beyond the surface, NOW; you can't know how soon it may be too late to do that. I directed the show ten years ago and despite admin concerns, we had a great time with it and the pushback was minimal; since then, as you know, it has become among the top most produced shows available.

    There's always a story behind one's story, and however flaky or flighty or withdrawn, taking kids seriously, and finding out what's really going on, is always worth the effort. And far outweighs other issues this play may offer (ours was not the Young Adventurers version).  I hope your administration backs you, as did mine.

    SKM characters ready for battle


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    Douglas "Chip" Rome
    Theatre Consultant
    Educational Stages
    Burke VA
    http://EducationalStages.com
    https://TheatreEducators.network
    https://bit.ly/RWTEOview
    https://bit.ly/eTeachTech
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: She Kills Monsters

    Posted 07-05-2023 11:09

    We did this show last fall and it was fantastic for our kids. 

    It is an excellent show for any program that:

    • Wants to teach how actors create characters with emotional depth, as the characters are all their own age and dealing with high stakes. There is always an element of caricature in the portrayal of an adult by a child because they simply cannot relate to an adult mind, very few shows offer all-teen casts that also feature this level of emotional depth.
    • Likes to show off how much they can create. Qui Nguyen puts some seemingly impossible challenges in the stage directions, including a battle with a five-headed dragon, and your tech team will love rising to the challenge.
    • Has a lot of LGBTQIA+ kids involved. These kids so seldom get to play people like themselves, let alone kids like themselves, let alone kids like themselves WHO ARE THE EPIC HEROES OF THE STORY. I watched the impact doing this show had on esteem and confidence throughout the process and into the rest of the year, and I've never been prouder of a production choice.

    I could go on and on about it, I think the Young Adventurer's Edition is as ideal a high-school play in 2023 as one could find.

    Best wishes!



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    Ed Krystosek
    Drama Director
    Oak Forest High School
    IL
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: She Kills Monsters

    Posted 07-05-2023 11:12

    We did SKM: Young Adventures Edition this past fall and it was a hit! With students and audience alike. As a high school theatre arts teacher, I found the Young Adventures Edition to be far more accessible to teenagers.

    For me as the director, this was a story about dealing with grief and loss at a young age. We go on a journey with Agnes through the grief of losing her sister,  not fully knowing who her sister was, and not really knowing who she is either. It's a lovely coming of age tale, told through the lens of Dungeon's and Dragons. There are a broad range of character opportunities, some are challenging and some are just fun. The stage combat is a must, so if you don't know how to properly choreograph those fight scenes I would find someone who does. My students really loved this aspect, and our fight scenes told a story too. 

    It also helped that I myself happened to be a teenager in 1995, so, I had a lived experience to share with students. They really wanted to make this play about LGBTQA+ themes, but even the character of Tilly time and again states "Does it matter?" So, I didn't let student's focus on this aspect because the play isn't about that. So, if admin pushes back on this part you could always highlight other aspects. We also got other departments involved to help design and build the dragon puppets and all the other monster puppets, and I had an advanced dance student choregraph the dance battle. So, it was a wonderful way to involve lots of other disciplines. 

    This is a wonderful production with a ton of value for young theatre artists. 

    I hope this is helpful.

    Sincerely,

    Rebecca~



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    Rebecca Lustig
    Westinghouse Arts Academy Charter School
    PA
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    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: She Kills Monsters

    Posted 07-06-2023 11:23

    We did the Young Adventurer's Edition in Fall 2022, and it was really great.  Well-received by all.  Happy to share what I wrote to Administrators when first proposing the show.  Just shoot me a private message.

    Interested in our production: https://www.mvhstheatrearts.com/skm2022



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    Jessica Shaw
    MVHS Theatre Arts Teacher & Director
    Mount Vernon High School
    VA
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    Original Message


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