Theatre Education

The Gahanna Lincoln Theatre Department is an educational program that brings together students as well as members of the community through live performances, live streaming performances, and through community service.  This department strives to deliver high caliber theatre experiences for the public that have large student engagement, interdisciplinary collaboration, and overall professional performances. 

The Gahanna Lincoln Theatre Department strives for its season, cast, and crew  to reflect the diversity of the  Community.  Shows are chosen that not only interest and challenge the performers and technicians, but that also have the ability to instill both a deeper understanding and empathy for the world around them, and to challenge and grow the technical skills of the students. It is Gahanna’s goal to maintain inclusivity at all times.  Students should feel celebrated, supported, and nurtured not in spite of their differences but because of them.  In the Gahanna Lincoln Theatre Department there is the utmost respect for all bodies, voices and beliefs.  With a newfound focus and passion we are ensuring our Theatre Department is for all persons including, but not limited to, members of the BIPOC community, the LGBTQA++ community and the neurodivergent community.  Through education, through self reflection, and through the art of theatre, we hope to create and share a place of equality, equity,  and accountability.

Any student, freshman through senior, is welcome to become involved with this award-winning theatre program! You do not need to be taking a theatre class in order to work backstage or audition for the productions. There is a theatre interest meeting scheduled within the first three weeks of the start of school. This meeting offers students the opportunity to meet other students interested in theatre, the current theatre staff and officer, the Theatre staff and Drama Officers, pick up tips/ advice on ways to get and stay involved, and, if interested, pick up an audition packet and/or crew packet for participation in the fall play. General information about the program is given at the beginning of the meeting and then the backstage/on stage groups separate for further information. (The musical will have an interest meeting in February as well. (These meetings are advertised/made known to all students during the morning announcements the week before the meeting, as well as posted on the theatre callboard, located outside the Little Theatre – H187.

The theatre department produces three main stage and three black box or studio productions per year, as well as smaller class performances throughout the year. They are:

Fall Play (November – all school)

Holiday Marathon  (December – theatre students. This show serves as the theatre semester final for all students in Introduction to Theatre, Theatre Appreciation and Performance Studio.)

Dinner Theatre  (February – Performance Studio class)

Varsity Varieties  (March – All- school talent show – interest meeting takes place in early December.)

Reflections  (April – Theatre Appreciation classes)

Spring Musical (May- all school)

Spring Performance for Lincoln Elementary Students (Introduction to Theatre – semester performance final)Senior Showcase (May – Performance Studio)

August  – first organizational meeting for the Performing Arts Boosters (PAB)

September:    Interest meeting, auditions for fall play, audition clinic, ITS (International Thespian Society’s) welcome mixer for students, rehearsals for fall play, Performing Arts Boosters meeting

October – ITS field trip, rehearsal for fall show, fall play load-in of set, Haunted Maze w/ Gahanna Parks and Recreation department (Performance Studio), PAB meeting

November – fall play rehearsals, fall play performance, Holiday Marathon emcee auditions (juniors and seniors taking a theatre class), ITS movie night, PAB meeting

December – Holiday Marathon performance (course final), Varsity Varieties interest meeting, theatre holiday celebration, PAB meeting (off site)

January – Varsity Varieties auditions/call backs, ITS mid-year induction, Gahannathon (theatre students perform), Introduction to Musical Theatre class begins 2^nd semester

February – dinner theatre (Performance Studio class), Varsity Varieties rehearsals, musical interest meeting, musical auditions/call backs, PAB meeting

March – Varsity Varieties rehearsals, Varsity Varieties performances, musical rehearsals, High Point elementary Reading Night and Children’s Theatre touring (Performance Studio class)

April – Spring Break, Reflections performances (Theatre Appreciation classes), musical load in of set, PAB meeting

May – musical rehearsals, musical performance, Performance Studio auditions/interviews, Performance Studio Showcase, drama banquet, ITS final get-together

 COURSE CODE (1350) • CREDIT ½ (E) • GRADES 9-12 

The student who elects to take this class will be required to attend three after-school rehearsals during the month of December. The dates will be determined and placed on the class calendar at the beginning of each school year. (Calendars will be handed out in class the first week of school and will also posted on gahannatheatre.com)The Finals for Introduction to Theatre will be performance based. This will include mandatory participation in Holiday Marathon (first semester final) or mandatory participation in original works performed for Lincoln elementary students (second semester final.)

The purpose of this course is to develop a knowledge and appreciation of theatre as a performing art. This course introduces students to the theatre, to contemporary plays and play production, and to the basic skills involved in the performing arts of mime, improvisation, oral interpretation, and acting. It is a combination of written and performance-based evaluation.  Basic concepts, theories, principles of theatre (team building/terminology, acting/scene study, etc.) will be investigated.  Performance based final. 

COURSE CODE (1370) • CREDIT ½ (E) • GRADES 9 –12

The purpose of this course is to develop an understanding and appreciation of musical theatre as a true art form and to explore its function and role within the American Theatre setting. Students will investigate such areas as the history of musical theatre, vocal and music techniques for stage performance, use of body movement and blocking on stage, components of audition techniques, scene/song study, and discuss the various styles and types of musicals being offered in today’s theatre. Performance based final.

COURSE CODE (1380) • CREDIT 1 (E) • GRADES 9-12

PREREQUISITE: APPLICATION, APPROVAL OF COURSE DIRECTOR

Application and approval of the course teacher required.  Technical Theater is an opportunity for novice students to explore themselves in art and art in themselves. The course focuses on beginning stage craft techniques that are the foundation for technical theatre. The beginning technicians will learn to interpret and execute a theatrical designer’s plans, much like a beginning actor learns how to interpret and execute a playwright’s script. Through collaborative class projects and hands-on work experience on main stage productions, students gain the confidence and technique needed to become a skilled technician. Applications may be obtained through Mr. Wagner.

COURSE CODE (1360) • CREDIT 1 (E) • GRADES 11 – 12

The student who elects to take this class will be required to attend three after-school rehearsals during the month of December. The dates will be determined and placed on the class calendar (calendars will be handed out in class and also posted on gahannatheatre.com) at the beginning of each school year. The final for Theatre Appreciation will be performance based. This will include mandatory participation in Holiday Marathon first semester and performances for various GJPS classes second semester.

This course is designed to develop an appreciation of the theatre through the viewpoint of a patron and a performer. As students analyze different types of plays and characters, explore the background of drama, and study the various aspects of play production, their ability to appreciate and enjoy any theatrical performance will be heightened. To encourage and develop students’ potential in the theatre, they will also participate in a variety of performances.  Performance based final.

COURSE CODE (1375) • CREDIT 1 (E) • GRADES 11 – 12

PREREQUISITE: THEATRE APPRECIATION, INTRODUCTI0N TO THEATRE, INTRODUCTION TO MUSICAL THEATRE, AND PERMISSION OF THE INSTRUCTOR. (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW AND AUDITION REQUIRED)

The student who elects to take this class will be required to attend three after-school rehearsals during the month of December for the Holiday Marathon performance. The dates will be determined and placed on the class calendar at the beginning of each school year.  (Class calendars may also be found at gahannatheatre.com.)The Final for Performance Studio will be a performance: Senior Showcase.

This is a selective course, application/audition/interview required.  Junior/senior class.  This advanced course is designed to develop further students’ performance potential and appreciation of quality theatre. Students will study acting techniques and the unique skills involved in writing, producing, and trooping children’s theatre, in addition to performing extensively in scenes from classic and contemporary plays. These students serve as the leaders and ambassadors of the program, both at GLHS and within the Gahanna Community.  Several off-site leadership and performance opportunities which include but are not limited to: Touring Theatre for Young Audiences to the Gahanna elementary schools, Haunted House in  October, and Dinner Theatre in February. 

Learn about the requirements for the Arts Honors Diploma at the Ohio Department of Education.