Opinion with Hugh Blackwood

A global pandemic. Countries at or on the brink of war. Dinner-table eruptions on subjects like race, sexuality, gender. Social media hammering wellbeing and health. Government corruption, inconsistency, U-turns and game-playing with health and education, lives and livelihoods…What a drama the last few years have been.

Dad jokes aside, it is impossible to have missed how afflicted young people have been over the last few years by the above and more, which is why subjects like Drama are more necessary than ever before.

I'm preaching to the converted here. We all know how valuable our subject is, but my questions are: why have things not shifted towards making the arts a sincere educational priority? Why aren't enough people pushing the absolute necessity of the performing arts being at the centre of the system, especially with the impact of the above on us all? I think we all know why. So, I'm not going to waste my shot on listing the reasons. It's a future conversation. I'm going to use my remaining words to accentuate the positive.