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Communication is probably the most important element in being an effective student leader, and heading a successful Unified Theater program. Not only is it imperative to be on the same page with your fellow leaders and advisor, but with the cast and crew as well. When the leaders aren’t all communicating effectively, ideas can often get lost in translation, people may not be heard, important tasks might not get done, and miscommunication can lead to hurt feelings.

 In my own experience as a UT leader, I’ve seen how communication can be vital to the entire production. My leadership team met on a bi-weekly basis, however we tended to formulate great ideas during our meetings, only to fail to follow-up on them in between our meetings. As the year went on, there was often confusion between the student leaders. Additionally, communication between the student leaders and the cast and crew is extremely important in ensuring that everyone is having a good experience with UT. Asking for feedback, building relationships with everyone involved, and tailoring to everyone’s interests is key to keeping your production functioning well. If the student leaders are getting wrapped up in their responsibilities, it can be easy to ignore the cast’s needs and miss the point of Unified Theater altogether!

If your production experiences communication issues, try these helpful tips:

1.     Start a student leader group chat to discuss ideas and check in on everyone’s progress with tasks. If someone in your leadership group doesn’t have a phone, apps like Facebook Messenger and even Instagram have group chat features!

2.     Setup a Facebook Group, Google Classroom, Email system, or Remind App Alerts to get in touch with your cast and crew members!

3.     If you encounter an issue with a fellow leader, address it with them respectfully and in due time! At Unified Theater, the only drama we’re interested in is the kind that happens onstage 😀

4.     If you’re feeling like there’s a lack of communication between the leaders and the cast, invite a cast or crew member to a leader meeting and let them share how they feel the show is going. Remember- even though we have leader roles, it doesn’t mean our opinions are any more important than those of the cast or crew members.

5.     If there are leadership positions that don’t require much work during rehearsal or the show, keep those people involved in the cast! This way, they will directly relate to how the cast is feeling about the production.

6.     Always stay optimistic! Talk to your advisor if you are having serious communication issues after trying these tips, but remember to have patience and positivity!

by Abby Condon, Advisor at King Philip Middle School

I joined Unified Theater during my freshman year at Conard High School after participating in Unified Sports throughout middle school. I knew I had found a group I wanted to be a part of when the focus was on encouraging everyone’s ability to shine, opposed to competing against each other by focusing on our differences. According to the Mean Girls’ categorization, our group included the band geeks, the varsity jocks, the math nerds, and the freshmen. However, at Unified Theater, those labels do not matter. We all collaborated, cooperated, and contributed towards our final production. We danced, we sang (in Sign Language, too!), and we acted. I was continuously reminded that imperfections should be embraced. I was shown that there are multiple ways to communicate, whether it be facial, via an iPad, or through movement. I learned how to lead a large group of people toward a common goal. It was in those moments that I decided to become a special education teacher. I wanted to help people realize their true potential while defying the limits of their labels. Now, I am beginning my first year as a Unified Theater advisor and I could not be more excited. It’s like they say, everything happens for a reason.

by Emily Camargo, Advisor at Bristow Middle School

My name is Emily Camargo and I am now an alumni and soon to be a teacher advisor at the wonderful Bristow Middle School in West Hartford. I participated in the very first middle school UT performance. From that point on, I was hooked. At the age of about 12 years old, I loved the feeling that I had as I was able to work with people of all different kinds of abilities. UT helped me see that those with disabilities are more alike then people may think. After two years of UT at middle school, I moved along to take part in the UT program at my high school where I was really able to engross myself in the program. During UT in high school, I loved it so much that I knew this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. FAST FORWARD. I am back from a short college break and am going to be introducing and leading many wonderful children into the new UT program at Brisow Middle School. I look back and think how grateful I am to have had UT to guide me into my passion of working with those with amazing abilities. I can't wait to pass that passion onto my students.

1) Get Inspired Research topics and themes that you might think are interesting and come to the meeting with ideas. It also might be worth it to go over the pros and cons of last year’s production to find a theme that better suits your school's needs. Using the UT Forums on the Spotlight Center is also a great way to learn about other productions and common questions. It also might be helpful to reference other school’s themes and productions to get back in the UT mindset.

2) Create an Open-Minded Atmosphere

Often the crazy ideas are the ones that work. Remember to keep the UT attitude of no judgment and inclusion and everyone will have a great time. If you notice negative talk such as “No, that wouldn’t work”  or “That’s a bad idea”, remind everyone that there are no bad ideas and to turn the conversation in a positive direction.

3) Make a List

It seems like the opposite of creativity but by creating a numbered list you can easily refer back to ideas and create a group goal. By having a numerical goal the group can become motivated to reach a set goal and come up with awesome and innovative ideas. This is best done on large paper or a whiteboard so that everyone can see and add in. My school likes to use giant sticky-notes when coming up with ideas.

4) Everyone Has a Voice

You might encounter some quieter kids in your UT group who don’t want to participate in the discussion. Ask them their opinion and see if they have anything to add. People on the shyer side often have great ideas but don’t necessarily feel comfortable speaking up. It might be helpful to enforce a “One Conversation at a Time Rule” so that people do not get sidetracked with other conversations or talking about multiple themes at once. By keeping everyone engaged and on the same page, the group will be much more productive.

5) Agree As a Group

When it comes time to finally pick out the theme for your production, you may encounter conflicts between members. Remember that everyone is in this together and by picking a theme that not everyone agrees on, it can be difficult to get their participation later on. If there seems to be no one theme that the group can agree on, try combining the themes or coming to a compromise.

Best of luck to all you rockstars!

Recently, I have been watching the show Switched At Birth. This show on Freeform is about two girls whose ID tags were switched when they were born. As a result, their parents were accidentally sent home from the hospital with the wrong babies. Fifteen years later, one of the girls, Bay Kennish discovers that the parents she has been living with are not her biological parents. The other girl who was switched is deaf. In this drama series, Katie LeClerc plays Daphne Vasquez, a 15 year old who went deaf when she was three years old due to meningitis.

Actress Katie LeClerc is actually hard of hearing in real life. In fact, all of the lead characters who are deaf are played by deaf or hard of hearing actors! The following actors in Switched At Birth are deaf or hard of hearing in real life.

Katie Leclerc (Daphne) - Meniere’s Disease. Because of this disease, she experiences hearing loss and sometimes she hears a roaring sound like she is listening to a seashell. Some days, Katie can hear pretty well, but some days she can hear nothing at all.

Ryan Lane (Travis) - Deaf

Marlee Matlin (Melody) - went deaf when she was 13 months old

Sean Berdy (Emmett) - Deaf since birth

Berdy believes that casting him and his fellow Deaf and hard of hearing castmates brings a realistic aspect to the show. Berdy, who is Deaf, also says that the way Deaf culture is portrayed in the show is very accurate. Casting actors with disabilities has made this show more deep and realistic. It is great how the Freeform network has made a show that is so realistic by incorporating a vast amount of deaf culture and education into one show.

Other movies and shows have incorporated actors with disabilities into their programs. Lauren Potter is a 26 year old actress with Down Syndrome. She played a returning character, Becky, on Glee.

Potter is a strong activist for people with intellectual disabilities, and she has even traveled all around the United States to speak against bullying. Lauren Potter was bullied all throughout high school for being different from everyone else. By speaking out, she feels as if she is making a difference in the world. Luke Zimmerman, an actor who also has Down Syndrome played Tom Bowman on The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Freeform and Fox cast actors with disabilities on their shows. By doing this, they made a more inclusive environment and didn’t exclude anyone.

Speechless, a new ABC show first aired on September 21st, 2016. It is about a family who moves to a new town with their three kids, two without disabilities, and one child that has cerebral palsy. This new sitcom focuses on an average family who does whatever they can to find the best school and environment for their child with a disability.  JJ DiMeo, a teenager with cerebral palsy is played by Micah Fowler, a new-to-the-screen actor who also has cerebral palsy. He says that he hopes that by watching the show, people begin to see his character JJ as a normal person and forget about his disability all together.

Although I was in the mainstream classes I think sometimes the other kids in school didn’t know how to relate to me because I was different from them. After school one day, while in my freshman year of high school, I was approached by a teacher who told me about an opportunity called Unified Theater.  It sounded interesting to me. So I went that day and I actually had a very good time.

At UT I met a lot of new people who became fast friends. It really did change my life by allowing me to discover that other people in the same age range as me have some of the same interests as I do. I think the other kids also learned that I was really just another one of them.

 Unified Theater has now been a part of my life for the past six years and it has continued to help me make new friends even after high school. In UT, the differences disappear.

The idea that music and the arts have undeniable power is central to both Unified Theater and music therapy. When both performing onstage along with my peers in the many different UT performances and when observing music therapy sessions I’ve had the same feeling of “this is it”. This is truly making music and magic together, this is positive change, this is inspiration, this is happiness. There is plenty of scientific research behind music therapy, including how music affects our brain and allows for physical, emotional, and cognitive improvement. But what makes music therapy so powerful and special to so many therapists and clients is hard to pinpoint with scientific proof, just as the way performing for the first time or crossing an imaginary bridge created by different abilities is hard to describe.

The first time I sang the lyrics “watch how we shine…” in eighth grade, I had yet to realize the new direction my life was being taken by joining Unified Theater. Up until then, I had little to no experience with my peers with disabilities, or any sort of disability awareness or activism. I was shy, unsure of myself, and unsure of how to interact with those who at first seemed so different from me. Fast forward 5 years, I was singing the lyrics I knew by heart for the last time with my Simsbury High group, fighting back tears as I held hands and took a bow with some of the most amazing people I have ever and will ever have the privilege of knowing. I’ve made connections with other teenagers through the Spring Tour, CampUT, and the YLC, and I can only hope I’ve touched some of these people’s lives as much as they’ve touched mine.

As I shared a video of “We Are Unified” with my class, I was filled with immense pride and gratitude. My professor commented how nice it was of me to get involved in a program like that. But I knew my peers, especially those with disabilities, gave so much more to me than I could ever have given them. I’ve learned patience, compassion, the importance of a smile, and that even when one’s brain or body works a little differently, that does not affect their ability to shine. I hope that as a future music therapist, the musical experiences I share with my clients help them to each find their own unique light to spread through the world.

Bus Stop is an improv game played by having a bench or two chairs and two members sitting in them. The object of the game is to get the person in the left chair out of the seat. You act as though you have never met each other. You can not touch the person you have to be very creative to come up with a creative way to get the other person out of the chair. This game can be used the entire term! This really builds teamwork and acting skills.

Dream It And Be It is basically a game of charades. You choose an occupation and act it out. Someone will raise their hand and they can guess! This has been a great icebreaker for us. We use this in the beginning when we don't really know everyone. The improves acting and cooperation skills.

Finally, Pass the Pulse is a game where everyone holds hands in a circle and you squeeze the person on your right sides hand and pass it around the circle as fast as you can. Make it a challenge to go faster and faster! We normally use this towards the end of Unified rehearsals, especially before shows. This improves teamwork and cooperation.

Often, the cast will want to work harder if they take a game breaks or are able to play a game during the session. It burns some energy and gets creative juices flowing. They encourage teamwork but also helps with active listening. I definitely know Middletown Unified Theater loves our games. I am sure your group will too!

UT Staff Note: You can also check out the Forums on the Spotlight Center for TONS of different theater games!

Photos by Todd Fairchild

I still see so much of those early days on the faces of the kids during the shows today – nervous excitement as the curtain comes up, laughter as scenes and songs are finished, and overwhelming pride as the audience rises from their seats in standing ovations as the stage lights dim.

Watching these shows, it is hard to contain a smile when you recall those exact same feelings as a teenager (particularly one who wasn’t someone who’d ever get a lead part in the school play, but felt included and empowered at Unified Theater). Making new friends at Unified was easy in a high school-world filled with social circles that were often difficult to navigate, even those that you were familiar with. I felt welcomed and unjudged from day one, and that feeling persisted until I graduated and moved away to college. What Unified gave me, very early on in my life, was an appreciation for approaching people with an open mind and arms, regardless of their outwardly apparent abilities or disabilities. People have a funny way of surprising you when given a chance, free from preconceived notions, and Unified Theater was instrumental in developing that mindset for me.  

It brings me such happiness to know that the Unified Theater community has grown exponentially since the very first program at Conard High School, and has left thousands of participants, audience members, families and educators with a better appreciation for the power of student-driven inclusion. It’s pretty amazing what kind of accepting and empowering worlds kids can create on their own, and ones that are often more educational than a classroom setting. Here’s to another 15 successful years of Unified! I can’t wait to see what is in store next!

(Brendan, center, at the 2014 UT Spotlight Celebration)