Civic Ensemble's The Class Divide Examines the Failures and Possibilities of Education

Civic Ensemble presents The Class Divide which observes the traditional mainstream public school education system through the lens of six high school students, their parents, and faculty, as they approach graduation day. The play begins on the high school seniors' special day and looks back on seminal moments of their education that has shaped their various imminent and rather uncertain futures.

The Class Divide deepens the conversation started in On the Corner, Civic Ensemble's 2015 community-based play about the origin of race in the United States. While On the Corner investigated race, class, and the origin of race in the United States, The Class Divide looks at how our current schooling system prepare students for lives of purpose and fulfillment. Longtime Civic participant Rachel Gould explained, "After watching my son go from an enthusiastic kindergartener to an uninterested, unmotivated, and unhappy 4th grader over the past few years, I find myself profoundly disappointed in his educational experiences so far. Working with Civic Ensemble and others in the community on this topic has been an excellent way to explore the many questions related to education, including "What are we doing wrong?" and "How can we do better?"

The annual community-based play program is the brainchild of Civic Engagement Director Sarah K. Chalmers. The program began in 2013 with Parent Stories, a collage of stories shared by parents in a series of community story circles. The material for Safety was gathered in a similar way. On the Corner, was created by participants sharing stories and developing material for a play that Civic Ensemble scripted. The Class Divide was developed from personal stories and group theatre games that explored the experiences of young people in the traditional public school system. When asked why he is participating in The Class Divide, Harry Pruyne said he was "looking for another way to express myself and was thinking about theatre as a place to do so. As a high school and college dropout, I made big decisions in my own life based on my experience in public schools. I am finding that this project is aiding me in both reflecting on that and allowing expression of that in a way that may give life and value to some of that experience."

The Class Divide features several cast members who have performed with Civic Ensemble in the past: SherRon Brown, Heather Duke, Rachel Gould, Ralfy Lawrence, James Schultz, Mitchell Smith and Jason Wilson. Performing with Civic for the first time are: Alex Clavel, Minsun Fisher-York, Michelle Horvath, Mary Loehr, Harry Pruyne and Will Wallace. And facilitating the community-based play this year are Director Sarah K. Chalmers and Associate Director Ella Carr of Civic Ensemble.

The Community-Based Play has received funding or in-kind support from the Community Foundation, Community Arts Partnership, Lehman Alternative Community School, and The Park Foundation.

Civic Ensemble is a non-profit theatre company serving Ithaca and Tompkins County that produces new plays by or about women and people of color, re-imaginings of classics, and community-based plays that explore and explode the social, political, and cultural issues of our time. Through the production of plays, after-school and in-school education programs for young people, and civic engagement programs with Ithaca community members, the company works to bring audiences of different races, classes, and experiences together in a public forum on the American experiment. Civic Ensemble is committed to employing Ithaca-based theatre artists whenever possible. It is our vision that theatre be accessible to all people, onstage and off.

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