Teacher feature: behind the wing with Kate Barazza

By Ava Bourdeau and Juliet Swimmer, Staff Writers

Kate Barazza is the Samo theater teacher and is well known for the high-quality productions she has led Samo through. From Portland to Ghana, Barazza has ingrained her passion into students from all over the world, and her love of teaching has led her to have a lasting impact on innumerable people. She now comes up with innovative ways to maintain an enriching theater department during these troubling times, with one production nearly finished and another in the works. 

JS: Hi Ms. Barazza! My name is Juliet Swimmer and we are so excited to be doing this teacher feature with you!

AB: Yes! Nice to meet you, I’m Ava Bourdeau. Let’s get right into this. What inspired you in your early life to become a high school teacher?

KB: I am originally from Portland. When I was in sixth grade [I’d go] to camp. Then, when I was in high school, I was a camp counselor. I’ve loved being outdoors and teaching kids since I was young. I traveled around the world in my 20s: I went to Africa, South America and Europe. At some point, I realized that I needed a career, and I reflected on what I was doing and what I love to do. Everywhere I went, I would find little teaching jobs, and I always just wanted to teach. So I guess it wasn't any one thing that inspired me or any one teacher necessarily. It was just something that I have always loved to do. I love being around kids and their energy, but not in a confined classroom environment. I liked more creative project oriented type of teaching that wasn't as confined.

JS: Did you do theater or acting as a child?

KB: Yeah, that's all I did! I wasn't really fully committed to school when I was a kid. A lot of my theater kids are way better students than I ever dreamed of being in high school. I was out of my house every night a week, but theater was my anchor in school. That was what I always felt confident in, and it was something that I loved to do.

AB: You mentioned teaching around the world. Tell us more about that! 

KB: When I was young, I went to Ghana, West Africa and taught English at a foster home. It was super fun, I just learned so much about people. I would teach English to Kindergarteners. It was just a very, very joyful experience. I mean, yes, there's insane poverty. These kids had horrible, horrible situations, but the joy was incredible. It was such a fun, exciting experience in a beautiful country with amazing people. Then I studied theater, African drumming and dance at the University of Accra in Ghana, and I joined a theater troupe in the city. We would travel around and do little theater pieces for different areas, and I made a lot of friends. The second time I went back, I stayed with a queen mother of that area, so I learned the language because people would come to her if they had a dispute. She was like a judge. 

JS: Did you ever study here in the U.S.?

KB: Yeah, I studied theater since I was in third grade and studied it in high school and college. My main thing was improvisation: doing improv groups and performing with improv groups. I was a lead on a webisode called “Distance Between Things” that never got picked up. That was fun working on it and getting that kind of experience. I was also in tons of plays out of college and in my 20s. But I didn't want to be an actress. I liked directing; I have more of a director's mind where I like to see the whole production get put together, and I like to coach people. I like how [acting] helps students develop their confidence; they start to take risks and make choices and believe in themselves. That's the thing that I love about teaching theater.

AB: What has your experience been like teaching at a school like Samo where people are so dedicated to the arts?

KB: It's awesome but was pretty tricky at first. Where I went to high school, it had the same demographics [as Samo]; It was very diverse. You have people from everywhere, you have all languages spoken, religions and socio economic [situations]. When I first got to Santa Monica High School, it kind of shocked me how serious people take [theater], and how much is at stake for people. It took me a while to adapt to it, it just threw me off. But once you start to understand the community a little bit better and get used to it it's all just beneficial. The problem that I have every time I cast a play or a musical is that there's way too much talent. I have to make some really tough decisions and break some people's hearts.

JS: What is the current status of Samo’s play?

KB: We finished filming “She Kills Monsters, Virtual Realms”. You know how there've been spikes with COVID? We reached a little soft spot, and we were able to do some in person filming. People wore masks and double masks, it was very busy. We kept six feet apart, and we took a lot of precautions, but we were able to film it. So now we're in the editing stage, and pretty soon, it'll be ready to be shown. I'm thinking, March, April. It'll be awesome. There's going to be special effects, and it's a good, compelling story. It's just a matter of getting this baby edited.

AB: Are there any new things you've learned while teaching during the pandemic that are going to carry over once we return to normal school?

KB: Yeah, I think so. We learned the skill of acting for the camera, which I had never taught before, and I had never directed a film before, so that was pretty exciting. Also just organizing and using technology in a way that I hadn't before. Take Google Classroom even; you can use technology in a theater classroom in ways that I hadn't before. 

AB: What do you miss most about in person school? 

KB: I miss moving around and being in the Humanities Center with students. I miss the banter that you can't really have on Zoom; you can't fully engage in a scene because in real life, we interrupt each other and we talk over each other. I miss live performances, having an audience and having those students get up and [seeing] how excited they get after a show. 

AB: Have there been any moments where you’ve been really inspired by your students and colleagues adapting and persevering through this?

KB: Absolutely. In the fall, the students did the DTASC festival. Drama teachers in Southern California have this festival in the fall and in the spring, and the students did so well. They put scenes together virtually and were super competitive. We got a second place, a third place, a fourth place, and a ton of people made it to finals, which is really hard because it's all the schools in Southern California [competing]. They committed to it, and they did the best they could with what they had. My colleagues are putting stuff together; the orchestra had their concert, and the choir has done amazing stuff. We're doing the best we can, people are definitely trying. I think mostly it's the students, the students keep trying. 

JS: That’s really cool.

AB: I’ve learned a lot; you’re incredibly interesting!

KB: Thank you so much!