English teacher Diana Sieker has taught at Costa since 2005. From the start, she’s brought her English class to life with auditions, live performances, props, and costumes. From Oedipus the King to Rhinoceros, Sieker’s classes help students explore the dynamic and exciting aspects of literature.
Currently, Sieker’s classes are studying Shakespeare. While her freshman English classes are studying Romeo and Juliet, seniors in her AP Literature classes are reading Hamlet. According to Sieker, this unit of study is always fun for the kids and memorable for her.
“One year I had a freshman student get so into his role as fiery Tybalt from Romeo and Juliet that he completely broke my fake sword during an on-stage sword fight,” said Sieker. “My AP Lit students were on deck to perform the big duel in Hamlet, and I didn’t know how the show would go on if I was down a sword. I hunted around my house for replacement props and remembered I had Star Wars lightsabers that could light up and play sound effects. The lightsaber duel between Hamlet and Laertes ended up being amazing, so I kept those props going.”
Adding fun elements like this is a staple for Sieker’s class. Sieker believes it’s important to hold auditions to maintain a good “onstage energy.” However, she does encourage her students to add their own flair and take some risks.
“My mantra is ‘Let’s get weird,’” said Sieker. “Humans tend to spend a lot of time and energy trying to be normal. The magic of theater is that it gives people permission to halt normal operating procedures and to try something unexpected or extraordinary.”
According to Sieker, this method has been beneficial and well-received by her students. She said that this approach enables a deeper understanding of the plot, characters, and themes than simply reading the plays independently. She has received a lot of positive comments, like this one from Costa principal, Dr. Jennifer Huynh.
“It was so fun to watch the students explore different accents and re-enactments,” said Huynh. “I had so much fun and I know the kids did as well. They certainly channeled the [characters] well. Thanks for making learning fun for the students. My face was hurting from all the laughter.”
Teachers aren’t the only ones who love this method of teaching—students love it as well. Sieker explained how the feedback she’s received from students over the past 12 years has shown her that these plays are both entertaining and engaging when taught this way.
“Performing a play gives students the opportunity to learn the roles from inside the actual story,” said senior AP Literature student Cory Kluthe. “We interact with the story in a deeper manner.”
According to Sieker, academically, the benefits are unmatched. She explained how holding auditions and assigning roles helps immensely because when she’s explaining or reviewing a specific portion of the play to the class, she can refer to events and people that students can easily remember.
“This is especially helpful for more challenging plays like Shakespearean works where there are many characters and plot details to keep straight,” said Sieker. “For example, when my English 9 students perform Oedipus the King, I wrap the performers in togas and have a handful of actors speak in unison as the chorus.”
Sieker said that she was initially inspired to start this tradition when she started teaching because she was a theater kid in her youth. According to Sieker, theater was one of the most positive and transformative experiences of her life, because she grew up kind of shy. When she sees this quality in her own students, she never ignores it.
“I have empathy for students on the more reserved side, and I aim to avoid forcing anyone to act out entire roles from entire plays in front of their peers,” said Sieker. “I also do lots of icebreakers and bonding activities in an attempt to get students as comfortable as possible, with the intention of encouraging the more reticent students to come out of their shells a bit.”
For the students who choose to perform, Sieker hopes that they benefit from having an outlet to be creative and a chance to take risks and be vulnerable. For the audience members, she hopes that they benefit from honing their listening skills and audience etiquette, as well as appreciating the value of live performances.
“I hope students see that literature can be communal, dynamic, and exciting,” said Sieker. “While reading literature independently is an invaluable experience, certain works of literature—especially poetry and theater—can be absolutely transformative when read or performed aloud. I hope we never lose the ancient technology of live performances of the written word because I think it is essential to humanity.”
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