<p>This idea is more on the fun side... but at my D's highschool they did a comedy sketch show every year that was written by the kids, and performed by the kids, as well as segments of comedy improv interspersed. Because it was student written, directed and performed by the kids it represented their voices well. Our school is ethnically very diverse, and it was the one production done every year that involved more than just the "drama nerds" as my D proudly referred to herself and friends.
I think comedy improv instills confidence in the kids, as they learn to think on their toes. Some people who became very close friends with my D she met through participation in improv, and it is something many kids have seen on television on shows like Who's Line is It Anyway, and there is also a show on MTV who's name escapes me, that is sort of urban Improv, so that might be an idea.
At our school, during intermission for Random, (which is what the show is called) a band would be set up on the quad where they could play loud music without deafening everyone. My D was in the show 3 years in HS, and she really got to know kids during script writing sessions. There were auditions early in the spring, and then some intense script writing sessions on weekends. Kids would come with an idea, and then get into writing teams and hash things out. After the completed scripts were turned in, the student director would select 7-8 of them. Some were small skits, and others involved larger casts. Interestingly enough, the rejected scripts sometimes came out of hiding the following year, got edited and made it into he new show.
It could be presented to the kids as something they are already familiar with, like MadTV, or SNL. BTW, if her school does not already have a comedy improv team, they involve a whole bunch of kids that may have never been on stage before, and are just funny kids. Many of them need a little help with self control, and so there are hard fast rules to be followed so hurtful insulting things are not said. This can be achieved by associating with a group like ComedySportz, which teaches high school teams how to do clean improv. The point has to be laugh at ourselves, but don't hurt other people's feelings.
It was interesting because this was the one show that had participants from all the groups at high school - my D got to know football players, editors of the newspaper and other different people through this group, and they learned a lof by figuring out how to make things work. The drama teacher had final say over the scripts, but I think over the course of the years I saw it, there were only 1 or 2 scripts edited due to content. And the way the improv worked was under control; if a participant said something that was over the line, they were given a hand gesture by the audience, and given a time out. The audience does get exuberant, but the audience was comprised of many teachers, as well as students who don't normally come to the school's theatrical productions.
I kind of digressed from my earlier post, but there are so many ways to do your D's project that this came to mind too.</p>
<p>Going back to the more staid ideas I expressed on my earlier post, I could envision kids who have studied Ballet Folklorico doing a performance, followed by a skit about social pressure in High School, and then a couple of singers doing a duet. It would really need to be something the kids wanted to do, in order to get them involved, so I think some way to survey them would be extremely helpful.</p>
<p>Sorry Wally, but once I get started, it just comes out.....just tell me enough is enough, and I will be quiet for awhile.</p>