Act Out

How to do Homework at Rehearsal:

One of the top reasons why thespians are so hirable in the workforce is that they have a reputation of having amazing time-management skills.  “When you’re a student, being involved in theatre forces you to learn how to budget your time. You need to schedule your days very carefully if you want to keep up your grades while you’re busy with rehearsals, work calls, and the other demands that theatre makes on your time.  Good time management skills are enormously important to employers.”

Do you have good time-management skills or do you need help with skills?

Things I know to be true:

• You must be dedicated to the play
• You must keep your grades up
• You cannot skip rehearsal to do homework, write a paper or study for a test
• You can come late to rehearsal to talk to a teacher or take a test or quiz if you inform the director first.
• You can do homework during rehearsal.

As an actor, technician, customer or make-up artist you can do homework during rehearsals.  There is always down time, breaks or times where you are not being utilized, so make a smart choice and get your homework done.  In every situation there are exceptions, that actor that never leaves the stage during a play, the sound designer running around connecting mics or the costumer sewing and fixing clothing.  But for a vast majority of us in theatre, homework is possible and necessary.

Here are some ways to reduce your stress concerning homework:

1. Set a goal to get at least one piece of homework done during rehearsal.
2. You have 20 minutes before rehearsal starts to get some work done.  Hunker down in the PAC seats and make a dent in that day’s homework.
3. Reduce your social media use during homework time.
4. Instead of checking your phone or talking to friends while off stage, pull out your homework to take notes, do that worksheet or fill in that semantic map.
5. Make use of the Black Box laptops for research or paper writing.
6. Ask to use the Midi lab computers when off stage
7. Bring your homework onstage with you to fill in those short answer questions during pauses.
8. Find people taking the same class and do your homework together
9. Find upperclassmen who took your class and ask for help.  They want to help, most need the service hours.
10. Plan ahead, study for tests a little at a time, starting sooner rather than later.  Write that paper when you have time and not the night before.

These are just a few ways to help relieve the stress of doing homework until midnight each night.  Now, I can tell you to do your homework in the down time you have in rehearsal, but it’s up to you to actually do it.  

Doing homework after rehearsal:

When you get home don’t turn on the TV, don’t find social media or youtube videos and fall into that dark hole.  Turn it off.   “I find it sad that I get more work done at 11 or 12:30 at night because that is when everyone else is asleep,” said Chris Blandy, 18, a senior at Cherry Hill High School West.

By turning off your cellphone and logging off social media on your computer, you can get the work done earlier.  It’s hard, I know.  But if you set that goal and stick to it, I know you can reduce your homework time and go to sleep sooner.   We can always hope that one day HHS will reduce its homework on you and thus reducing your stress exponentially.  Until then we have to play the game and do homework to get good grades.

Look at all these images I found on google of students doing homework during rehearsal! If these kids can do it, YOU can too!!