A Visit From Cecily O'Neill by Marissa Porto
Before I even began taking classes in the
Educational Theatre department at City College, I had heard several
conversations about a woman name Cecily that came to school to run something
called a process drama. All I knew was that it had something to do with young
people, Lord of the Flies, and that
everyone really liked whomever this woman was. Of course, it took me all of a week
to learn just who she was and to become infatuated with her teaching
philosophies. I was also instantly jealous of everyone that had the opportunity
to see her lead a process drama in person!
One can imagine, then, how
unbelievably excited I was to hear that she offered to come back! On March 1st,
I finally had the chance to see Cecily O’Neill, who has inspired me since
beginning my studies, in action! And even more, have the chance to participate in one of her process dramas,
not just watch it!
I walked into the green room of
Aaron Davis Hall and the first person I saw was Cecily and I was instantly star
struck. I wanted nothing more than to go up to her and tell her what a big fan
I was of her work, but instead I turned into a gawking schoolgirl who lingered
in the corner, wishing I were brave enough to approach her. As soon as we began
the workshop, however, I realized that she is one of the most approachable and
humble people I have ever met.
The first thing we were
instructed to do was pair up with someone and to describe, in detail, our
bedrooms as we had left them that morning. The person listening was not allowed
to ask any questions; just listen. She then instructed us to take out paper and
a pen and draw the bedroom our partner described to us. To make it even more
dramatic, we were to be graded on our drawing as well…
From here we moved into new
pairs and played out scenes as reporters and the very wealthy people that were
showing us their magnificent homes we were writing about. Seamlessly and
without even realizing what was going on, we were in the midst of an intense
rumor mill that led into an hour-long process drama about a mysterious family
and the skeletons in their closet. When I look back on the day, I truly don’t
know how we got from point A to point B, but what I do know is that every
single one of us was 100% engaged. Cecily has this uncanny ability to hold a
room and gracefully usher her students through various adventures.
At the end of our time together,
we asked Cecily a million questions, which she elegantly answered. One of the
participants asked “Did you have that all planned out? Or did you just have an
idea of where you wanted us to end up?” To which she replied, “No. I came in
here with an entirely different idea, but you all seemed so interested in the
stories we were uncovering, that I felt I needed to follow you there.”
It is that ability to follow and
honor her students that makes her so unbelievably great at what she does and
what will continue to inspire me. I hope that Cecily plans another trip to New
York and offers to work with us again, because you all deserve the opportunity
to work with this master in our field. And I will certainly continue to seek
out and attend any chance I get to work with her again!
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