thirsty

Discussion Questions

Pre-Production

Grades 9-12

  1. What comes to mind when you think of the word “theatre”?  What are your expectations?
  2. Has the theatre you have seen in the past engaged you?  Why or why not?  Which elements of the theatre do you find most compelling?
  3. thirsty is written in highly poetic and imagistic language.  Are you drawn to this?  How do you think this might benefit or detract from the play?
  4. As a student today, how do you view race relations?

Post-Production

Grades 9 & 10

  1. Which character in the piece resonated with you the most and why?
  2. Did the writing style and language of the play cause you to engage with the story more or less?  Why?
  3. How did the production design help to effectively relay the story? What did you find to be the most effective design element and why?
  4. What is your personal relationship to poetry?  Do you find it intimidating, engaging or powerful?  Do you ever write verse yourself? 
  5. What is your perception of relations between cultural minorities and the police now?  What would you change, if anything?
  6. How does one balance the divide between the practices of one's own culture with the cultural practices of the country one lives in?  Is it difficult straddling two worlds?

Grades 11 & 12 (in addition to the preceding six questions)

  1. Have you personally experienced, or witnessed, any incidents in which you believe racial profiling occurred? What were the circumstances?
  2. What are the disadvantages of growing up in a family with traditional gender roles?  Is it all negative or are there are advantages?  If so, what are they?
  3. What is the personal cost of moving to/growing up in a country where you are a minority?
  4. How can religion unite a family and how can it cause division? What effect did religion have on this family's life?  How do you view religion as a force in the world?
  5. Does your understanding of a message increase or decrease based on the form that the language takes?  How do you interpret a story told through hiphop differently from one told through language like that of the play?  Do you see similarities between the two?