Freaky Friday fulfills the Interim mission
The Sharon Academy’s High School Musical Interim is a unique example of its commitment to the principles of deeper learning. While there is a stated mission for this two-week hiatus from traditional classes, students who are new to the school often don’t appreciate its significance until the middle of the second week, when the performance looms and the consequences of their previous actions or inactions become real. What is real is that the community suddenly gels into a collaborative, unified team to produce a show for the public. Not only are problems solved but relationships are built that will last beyond the final curtain.
Aiden Sawyer ’26 spoke to a gathering of audience members at a wine and cheese reception before opening night. He recalled, “starting my first interim last year, I started to really see the mission of interim. It’s about the community. During that interim, I met more people and had more conversations than the rest of the year, because the show only happens when everyone contributes. It was this community that pushed me to overcome my fears of leadership and take charge of lights this year. This school has a weird way of convincing you to step out of your comfort zone and into new roles. As a leader this year I learned the even deeper aspects of interim. I learned about taking care of my peers and keeping consistent expectations. I learned about running professional lighting setups and how to connect lights into the board so that you can see our hardworking actors from every angle tonight. Beyond all that, I felt a very special connection to the community of TSA as I watched my committee interact more and start to challenge themselves throughout these last two weeks.”
Unlike most high school productions, which are dominated by a small group of dedicated drama-inclined students, at TSA every student is involved and seniors are in lead roles regardless of talent or experience. Were there flaws? Undoubtedly. But the production is almost beside the point. What is amazing is how the process worked. After only two weeks of intense preparation, the result of this community bonding and deep learning was a joyful, well-oiled, entertaining show. As Head of School Mary Newman noted in her introduction, this weekend’s performances are a kind of summative assessment for the learning challenge to produce a musical with minimal adult intervention. Final grade? A+.