Unified Theatre Prepares To Take Stage For Production Like No Other
DENVER (CBS4)- Theater fans gather at the Denver Center for Performing Arts to see their favorite performances, but next week the big show will be down the street. It's a play that required no audition, but these actors worked harder than any cast you've ever seen.
Drama students with special needs at John F. Kennedy High School will perform for the first time at the Denver Public Schools Achieve Gala at the Hyatt Regency Denver.
"We have a girl who is blind, kids who have seizures. Every day is a brand new challenge. It's figuring out how to adapt and make it work," said drama teacher Tim Boyles.
Boyles graduated from Kennedy High School in 2003. After graduating from the University of Colorado with a degree in theatre, he returned to his alma mater to teach his passion.
Students with special needs previously enrolled in Drama I. Now, they have a class that's all theirs- Unified Theatre.
"You see the spark and they come alive! It's a class for them to act and be big," explained Boyles.
He'll sit beside the students as he narrates their play and help them with stage direction during their performance on April 30.
Their success can't be measured with grades. For many, every bit of progress deserves a standing ovation.
"How do I have a kid who is nonverbal perform Shakespeare? We used an iPad. It is constantly finding new ways. We had a student who was barely talking. Now, in the hallway he says 'Hi, Mr. Boyles!' and is using full sentences," said Boyles.
Unified Theatre isn't a core class like math, or science, or English – it's art. But for these students and their families, it's anything but an elective.
"I watch the parents see their kids in a new light they've never seen before," said Boyles, "Every day I get to watch them grow and it's fantastic. It's amazing."
