“Nice Work If You Can Get It” is a song and a dance number coming near the finale of this year’s Cazenovia High school drama Club’s presentation of “Crazy for You.” And I was there for all four performances. Sure, to begin with I came to see my oldest grandson who was in the cast, but, unprepared, I experienced something else, something above and beyond.
The energy, the months-long preparation learning lines, songs, cues and how to tap dance, the enthusiasm of the cast was palpable. The enthusiasm, the absolute delight they radiated was catching. And there was more, more in the strong relationship between and among the cast, the crew and the faculty who were the team that brought it all to fruition.
And there was still more, as the production demonstrated what all teachers strive for – authentic assessment. You measure the success of what you actually do and in a theatrical production that encompasses the coordination, the cooperation, the building of collegiality that demonstrates the worth of all of the participants from musicians to stage crew to ushers to performers.
I tread here softly, as it brings back the bittersweet memories of my teaching days, when I so often felt privileged to be a teacher as I watched young men and women grow in front of me, as they struggled to put the disparate subject matter of their school days into context. After all, math and science don’t exist as entities, they are part of the culture, mixed into what becomes history and is written as literature.
I remember standing in the cafeteria, watching my pupils with their heads down concentrating on the end-of-the-year testing mandated by the state. I felt proud of what had transpired, proud that we had worked through all of the barriers that come to the fore during the year. We began in one place and ended at another. For most had acquired something that did not have when we began. We both, teacher and student, had gained something because of our interactions
While I worked hard to fulfill the state’s requirements, the syllabus, to measure the acquisition of specific knowledge, I knew that what I had taught would not have equal importance to every student. If you are a competent teacher it becomes painfully clear that those beings sitting in front of you are whole beings with different strengths, weaknesses and interests.
The arts provide an opportunity for so many students to shine. My own experience working with student productions taught me that for all students, from those who excelled to those for whom school was difficult, there were opportunities to demonstrate skills in some way in a school play. The experience teaches lessons in collegiality and cooperation that can translate into the “real” world. It teaches that hard work counts, that your part is part of the success of the whole. Heady stuff.
Being a teacher can be difficult. Obtuse state mandates, local bruhahas, disgruntled parents, students who come to class burdened with more than you can imagine … all are on the negative side of the ledger. On the other side is the transcendence of the links that are forged between teacher and student, the sense of connection, often not borne out for many years.
Remember the phrase “I teach, I touch the future?” There is a sense that being there for the children, caring for their current and future successes, is beyond joy.
To quote the title from George and Ira Gershwin, It is “Nice work if you get it.”
