Senior Alex Cluka in Broadway Company and Drama Department

Alexandra Cluka is an Arrowhead senior who has dedicated her time in high school to the Arrowhead Drama Department as well as Arrowhead’s Broadway Company. 

Cluka has been involved in both Drama and Broadway Company. She explains the difference between the activities as “two very different environments, each with a unique experience. I definitely felt more at home and comfortable in the Drama Department, but Broadway Company helped me develop an ambitious and slightly competitive mindset. Drama Department does a wonderful job at providing opportunities to almost everyone, however, in Broadway Company, you have to work extremely hard to achieve your goals.” 

According to the Arrowhead website, “The Broadway Company is a unique performance opportunity. It is special because it is both a class and an extracurricular activity. Open by audition only to sophomores, juniors, and seniors, the group specializes in acting, singing, and dancing from Broadway shows.” The group is led by the choir teacher Gustavo Chaviano and has two major productions each year. 

Cluka says that she has experienced not only the differences between Broadway Company and the Drama Department but differences in acting and directing productions. She says, “The difference between acting and directing is quite simple. When you are an actor, you are only responsible for yourself. You’re not worried about the choreography for other scenes, the lighting design, or the timing of other characters’ entrances. When you’re directing, you get to see the show in its full picture, not just from the perspective of one character. It makes the experience much more nerve-wracking, but all the more gratifying. I felt extremely proud to have helped in the directing process.”

According to the Arrowhead website, “Arrowhead Drama, led by Mrs. Markano, produces TWO shows each year that are independent from the choir department’s Broadway Company productions. Our shows are open to ALL students in ALL grades. The plays vary from year to year: sometimes drama, sometimes comedy, sometimes mystery, sometimes classic, sometimes contemporary, and sometimes a musical.” In addition to this, Arrowhead offers an acting class that is considered to be a part of the Drama Department that changes each semester, allowing students to take the course up to a total of six times for school credit.

Cluka says that her “favorite moment within the Drama Department has definitely been the opportunity to student direct their musical this year, Les Miserables. This was an incredibly gratifying experience for me and I miss this show dearly.”

Cluka says that if she were to sum up her time through arrowhead it would be “well-rounded” as she has truly experienced theater, both acting and directing.