Clovis High School

The Clovis High Theatre Arts Department is geared toward providing each student with a comprehensive theatre experience encompassing all aspects of acting, directing, design, and theatrical production as well as an introduction to theatre history.  We foster a safe environment to explore and experiment, while at the same time pushing students to discover themselves and their art. We do not offer acting classes to create professional actors, but rather a theatre arts classes to create well-rounded citizens. They are fun classes for students who want to develop leadership skills, build self-confidence, learn how to solve problems, and expand their creativity, all while maintaining a rigorous curriculum.

Our Theatre Arts Department attracts a diverse group of talented and dedicated students. Over the last 44 years, our program has continued to produce successful musical productions and dynamic plays in either the new Dan Pessano Black Box Theatre, or the Mercedes Edwards Theatre.  In addition to our annual main stage productions, the department continues to offer all students with numerous performance opportunities including Dramatic Desserts, a Children's Theatre Tour, our Improv Team, lunchtime Brown Bag Theatre, as well as our very popular Drama Club, STAGE 71.

We strongly believe that theatre promotes team-building, cooperation, and the willingness to work with others toward a common goal while allowing students to reach within and share their own unique contributions.   We believe in developing critical thinking skills which strengthen a student’s abilities to make qualitative decisions in all aspects of their lives, while at the same time developing creative problem-solving skills when faced with situations without clear-cut answers.

Classes offered include:

• Drama 1 is an introductory course where students explore all the basic skills used in theatre arts. Students in this class will perform memorized scenes from published plays and develop their own improvised scenes. Theatre History and critical analysis will also be covered and students will learn to analyze and assess their own work as well as that of recognized artists. Students are also introduced to the art of stagecraft as they create costume and set designs while having fun and taking part in all of our stage productions!
• Drama 2 is a year-long class where students study styles of acting and the history of theatre. From the Greeks to the Modern playwrights, students read, analyze, and perform scenes and monologues. Students are expected to participate in the extra-curricular school-wide productions.
• Drama 3-4 is a performance-based class. Students expand their literature repertoire, participate in scenes, monologues, one-act plays, musical presentations, and improvisation. Design work in costume, scenic, and graphic arts are incorporated into the class productions. Students are expected to participate in the extra-curricular school-wide productions.
• Technical Theater Arts (formerly Stagecraft) focuses on the basic skills of theatre stagecraft through involvement in the preparation for, and production of plays. Students will be expected to help construct and paint scenery and props, create and build costumes, design and operate lighting and sound equipment. Some after school and evening rehearsals may be scheduled. This is a one-year course which may be repeated.

Technical Theater Arts Bus Information:

• Bus #29 will pick up in The U Mondays, Wednesday, Friday only. 
  • M/W/F  Pick up CHS @1:15 pm
  • M/F Return  CHS @ 2:10 pm
  • Wed Return  CHS @ 3:15 pm