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Theater is a great way for children and teens to develop valuable skills that will translate into their future careers! Although as a parent watching your child forget their lines in front of dozens of adults may seem painful, it is important to realize and remember that just a few of the benefits of such an embarrassing disaster is learning to work as a team, to problem solving, and to be comfortable with public speaking. These imperative skills and a few others are some of the best 7 ways theater can benefit your child’s future career.

1. Public Speaking

Up to 75% of the US population suffers from glossophobia, the fear of public speaking. However, many jobs require employees to speak in front of colleagues or clients on a regular basis. Standing up in front of the entire school in tights quoting Hamlet will help someone get over this fear very quickly. When the time comes to give a presentation, they will deliver with confidence and articulate better than their peers. Superiors may even see this as a quality of a successful leader.

2. Creativity

Participating in theater encourages your child to lean into the creative process. They must use creativity when navigating the stage, delivering lines, and interacting with other actors. A large amount of creativity is needed when designing the set and costumes, too. Years later, this creative mindset will come in handy when a unique problem pops up at work. Many employees might struggle to find a solution that doesn’t fit in the template provided to them. Your child will be able to think outside of the box and stand out.

3. Collaboration

It takes a lot of people to make a school production come to fruition. Your child will learn to work with others to create a completely finished product. When they must team up at work, they will feel comfortable and know how to get things done in a group setting.

4. Hard Work

It may look easy to memorize lines, but it’s not. It takes hours of reciting lines repeatedly to the point where if you’re helping your child learn it, you may eventually memorize the lines yourself. While maybe somewhat annoying, your child is indeed working extremely hard. Theater is training them for the work ethic and attention span they will have to have in their future career.

5. Deadlines

If your child doesn’t have their lines memorized well before opening night, they can’t ask for an extension. The tickets are sold and people are in the seats, so they had better deliver on time. If they don’t, they will let themselves and the rest of the theater group down. They will learn to respect deadlines that they will be given at work in the same way.

6. Appreciation of the Arts/Culture

We have a responsibility to the genius creative minds of the past to maintain their works for the generations in the future. These works teach multitudes about the culture of the period that we can not get from digging up old bones. History isn’t necessarily the people in the flesh- it’s the architecture, the theater, the paintings, the pottery, and the music. When performing plays, children learn to appreciate the art of theater. This can be used to strike up conversation with high-minded people in the workplace or even encourage a little more culture around the office.

7. Expression

Theater teaches children to express emotion through the characters in the play. They will read dialogue differently if a character is angry, sad, or excited. In doing this, they learn how to express themselves properly. Many people struggle to say how they feel or speak up at the workplace. Being afraid to express themselves can cause them to fly under the radar and go unnoticed. They also won’t feel comfortable speaking up for themselves when they want a raise or have a problem in the office. Your child will feel more comfortable due to their experience portraying those emotions in potential situations.

Conclusion

Whether it’s Death of a Salesman, Othello, or Seussical: The Musical, your child should be encouraged to get on stage and learn these value lessons. Hopefully for you, as they get older and keep performing, the plays get better.