by:  Amber Considine

A teacher who has made vast contributions to Westborough High School is theater arts instructor Ms. Slotnick. Her room is tucked away in the dark depths of the D-wing completely hidden from the students. Although she has been teaching at this high school for five years most people are unaware of her impact on our school.

Ms. Slotnick’s passion for theater developed in her sophomore year of high school as she was quickly drawn to the idea of directing. Later in her sophomore year of college she directed her first play, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) by The Reduced Shakespeare Company.  It was a three man show which involved sections of every play Shakespeare ever wrote.

Here at WHS, in addition to her directing the school plays and musicals, Ms. Slotnick also has taught a number of courses such as Theater Arts I & II, Film and Society, Theatrical Ensemble, Theatrical Production, and a Shakespeare class. Theatrical Ensemble, her favorite course to teach, is a class dedicated to playwriting. She states that she loves the creative aspect of it and “enjoy(s) seeing the process come together”. Within the next few years she is hoping to bring a modern drama course to the high school, which would be based around the study of drama theater and the development of the  literature.

This fall, Ms. Slotnick is directing The Laramie Project. This play is about the Matthew Shepard tragedy set in 1998, which later establishes the Hate Crime Legislation to be passed. This play has very dark themes and complex characters which Ms. Slotnick is hoping to develop to the fullest. When asked why she choose to direct this drama she replied by saying that, universally, we are all experiencing tragedy, from school shooting to war.  She also states that it is important to “find hope among the dark stuff”.

Lastly, Ms. Sotnick says she would love to continue teaching at the high school and maybe at some point venture to teach college courses. She encourages everyone to come see both Part 1 and Part 2 of The Laramie Project.  tI is a complicated piece but worth the experience. The piece is very much a “thinking play” where the audience will walk out with a better sense of community and hope.