By Marilyn Jozwik
Next Act Theatre has followed up its successful “The Christians” with another pandemic-era success, “Principal, Principle.”
Tickets for the virtual show, presented through March 7, are available at www.nextact.org.
The show, by Joe Zarrow, follows the first school year of rookie English teacher Kay Josephs (April Paul) at a fictional urban Chicago school, Chinua Achebe High School. (Achebe was a real Nigerian novelist, best known for “Things Fall Apart,” published in 1958.)
Josephs is young, full of idealism, energy and optimism as she embarks on her new career. During her first school year, her English Department colleagues, with whom she shares an office, turn her ideas about teaching on their head.
Most of the play, directed by Marti Gobel, takes place in the English Department room, shared by Kay with colleagues Denise (Flora Coker), Shelley (Malaina Moore) and Ola (Ericka Wade), the department head.
Josephs’ strictly-by-the-book approach and passion catch the eye of Principal Wei (Megan Kim), who asks her to be part of the Instructional Leadership Team as a Master Teacher. While she is flattered by the recognition, her English Department cohorts think little of it. Instead, they each share their own ideas about teaching, and what they think about all the academic buzzwords like best practices, rubrics, high standards, honor, achievement and rigor.
Kay (April Paul), on desk, proclaims to her office mates, from left, Ola (Ericka Wade), Shelley (Malaina Moore) and Denise (Flora Coker), that she’s going to start teaching her way in a scene from Next Act Theatre’s “Principal, Principle.”
After going through the first semester following all the requirements, Kay is moved by Shelley, who has chucked much of the curriculum for what she says is more relevant info for her mostly black students. In a “Les Miz” style speech Kay hops on the desk – and on Shelley’s bandwagon -- and proclaims, “I’m going to do things my way!”
Kay returns from semester break with her own agenda that works well at first, but then the wheels fall off. She listens to crusty Denise, a veteran teacher on the cusp of retirement who is cynical and sarcastic. Denise praises Shelley’s creativity in the classroom, yet still believes students need to learn boring basics because the workaday world they are facing isn’t going to be fun.
Meanwhile, Ola, the peacemaker, brings treats to school to keep the little quartet of teachers on an even keel.
As the school year winds down, Kay faces all sorts of challenges in the classroom (which the audience never actually sees), such as students who don’t show up, who plagiarize, who forge their parents’ signatures, who mock students and teachers – as well as deep divisions within the teachers’ ranks, based on race and ideology. The characters begin to come more into focus as relationship dynamics shift.
The ensemble cast is wonderful, handling with precision the fast and witty dialog as the four teachers vent, criticize, calm, encourage and expound on the trials and tribulations of their profession.
The characters in “Principal, Principle” are so relatable, the conversations are so real. Anyone who has worked in any field may recognize colleagues they’ve had in these characters.
Wade is wonderful as Ola, the calming force, trying always to mediate and see all sides of a situation. Coker portrays the irritable Denise with just the right grumpy tone and sarcastic wit.
But the centerpiece is the relationship between Kay, who is White, and Shelley, who is Black. Paul and Moore are marvelous as the two passionate teachers who find themselves in a complicated battle of principles in which there is no winner.
Principal Wei (Megan Kim), facing, discusses the new rigorous standards at Chinua Achebe High School with Kay Josephs (April Paul) in a scene from Next Act Theatre’s “Principal, Principle.”
Kim handles the Principal Wei role with appropriate self-righteousness, while Malkia Stampley, her face partially shown at a microphone, reads numerous school announcements that hammer home the barrage of rules and often useless interruptions that are typically part of the students’ and educators’ day.