Students in Theater Arts 8 explore the writing and performing of theatrical text. Through writing and speaking exercises, we dive into the physical, vocal and organizational aspects of writing monologues, dialogues and short scenes.  A variety of writing prompts will lead the students to build on tempo, tension, character development, and resolution.  During the fall months, the students use the research and class work from their English and history classes to create monologues or dialogues about the immigrant experience. The winter months find students using class exercises to build up to writing a 10-minute play with a given theme. During the spring, the students are reading a Shakespeare comedy in their English class, so the exercises and prompts in Theater class will be based on or inspired by Shakespeare and his works. Over the course of each term, the students write, critique, revise, and eventually cast their written work.  Every student is expected to participate in the reading of other student work in the class.  At the end of every unit, the theater class presents a selection of their writing to an assembly of the entire Middle School.