Dekalb School of the Arts

Went here for high school for a year. One of the niftiest experiences, and great people to boot!
I learned from my vocal performance instructor that I have a «seductive lower register.» Interesting, eh? Really helped me hone my skills as a singer, songwriter and all-​around musician and person.

«Must the Show Go On?» — Black History Tour Show, 2011, co-​directed by 3^rd Year Creative Writing student Natalie Cook and teacher Cale Golden (recent DeKalb County Teacher-​of-​the-​Year) and co-​written by six other remarkably talented 3^rd year CW students.
What happens when a bunch of talented creative writing students get together with their teacher to brainstorm about what’s good in contemporary African-​American Culture, and what’s not so good… Provocation! I promise you, this isn’t High School Musical.
[…from the Director’s Notes] Mr. Golden has, for years, striven to help his students understand satire and allegory. When presented in theater, these challenge the audience to really «think about what they’re seeing, because it’s not always what it seems to be.» Allegory is «wholly symbolic, and with satire… well, let’s just say it’s often a challenge to explain to someone who isn’t ‘in on the joke’.»
The DSA student body is predominantly African-​American, and when this group of students approached their teacher with the idea of presenting these most complex of writing genres in the 2011 Black History Tour Show, he «was a bit apprehensive.» Recent years’ BHT Shows had been positive, uplifting… and this exploration of «the darker side of society felt risky and taboo.»
This year’s BHT Show is a three-​ring circus with a Ringmaster, a Lion Tamer, a Strongman, Hypnotist, Siamese Twins, Clowns, and other odd entertainers from the circus’ real life world. The players so creatively illustrate how blacks sometimes diminish the spirit of their fellows, and how non-​blacks still diss’ their neighbors. Every character is fleshed out by the passion of a DSA student… each one of them believable, engaging, and committed to the craft of drama and storytelling.
[Again, from the Director’s Notes…] Eagerly desiring to explore this darker side, the students gave Mr. Golden «their rationale: they wanted to have a conversation with their generation about the history it was creating…»
Mr. Golden asked, «How could I argue with that?» Let the conversations begin.
You can book this show by calling Mr. Golden at DeKalb School of the Arts (678−676−2502,) and you can provoke your audience to ask themselves tough questions. The students will be happy to take their questions when the circus is over.