Theatre

Sign up for a theatre arts class to fulfill your Fine Arts Class requirement with (UC approved) Introduction to Acting—a fun, on-your-feet “how to” class where students work to gain confidence expressing themselves as creative artists.

Students study terms and techniques, get up on their feet and “do,” and participate in character development vis-a-vis scene study, audition/resume, public speaking, and other useful creative techniques.  

The Theatre Department produces two shows annually, a fall play and spring musical. Auditioning for one of these performances gives students the opportunity to explore the transformative experience of performing on stage and making lifetime memories. This is also a co-ed opportunity, as female students from local schools are cast in the shows.

Learn more about other co-ed opportunities.

Mentored by theatre professionals and a hands-on technical director, the stage crew builds sets and run shows. Students learn all of the technical aspects of stage and theatre productions which are skills that will last for a lifetime.

The Drama Club meets at lunch for Open Mic Mondays, and every Thursday at lunch for business meetings and Improv Workouts. Students (both male and female) can join the International Thespian Society’s Troupe #5596. The I.T.S. offers “Star” points for activities in and around the theatre such as cast, crew, workdays, outings, and field trips. With the current challenges of higher education college admission officers like to see that students are busy with extracurricular activities in their high school years. Inductions into the Troupe happen each spring at the Drama Awards Banquet. Membership is optional (and not required for participation in the Drama Club), and for a fee you receive a personalized membership card and a 1-year subscription to Dramatics Magazine.    

Students have the option to attend Broadway shows in San Francisco’s downtown theatres with Drama Club, with as many backstage tours as we can arrange! Current trade magazines are also available for students to read in theatre lobby, including American Theatre Magazine, Theatre Bay Area, Stage Directions, Dramatics, and Drama Biz.

Students have the option to attend a variety of drama competitions. Past competitions include the Lenaea Festival, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Shakespeare Competition with the English Speaking Union, Ohlone College High School Theatre Festival, and the Beach Blanket Babylon Scholarship Audition.

Riordan Drama also received six awards from the National Youth Arts Awards for 2016-17 performances of Circus Olympus, The Frogs and Godspell.

An ongoing group of dedicated parents whose children either attend Riordan or appear on or back stage (or in the pit orchestra for the spring musical), the Boosters are vital to the success of each production for their tireless dedication to helping students succeed.

Each production holds several Drama Booster workdays on Saturdays from 10:00 am – 4:30 pm. Riordan parents receive parent volunteer hours for their assistance in a relaxed, fun and creative atmosphere.

Please contact Drama Director Valerie O’Riordan, voriordan@riordanhs.org, for more ways to get involved.

Through a Facebook page and annual Alumni Night at the Musical, the Theatre Department keeps in good touch with many theatre alums. In the fall of 2013, under the vision of Drama Director Valerie O’Riordan, the school hosted the first-ever alumni review, Lucky ’13: A Labor of Love, bringing together performers from six decades. Notable Riordan drama alumni include:

• Joe Spano ’63, an acclaimed television and stage actor who appeared on Hill Street Blues and currently stars as Agent Tobias Fornell on NCIS.
• Dominic Nolfi ’96, a Broadway notable who has recently performed in A Bronx Tale, Motown the Musical, and Jersey Boys.
• Jimmie Fails ’12, recently starred in the widely-acclaimed film, The Last Black Man in San Francisco.

In the Marianist spirit, students look outside of themselves to the needs of those less fortunate and realize that the arts can be powerful tools for stewarship. Since January 2005, Riordan Drama students have collected more than $27,000 in donations for these worthy non-profits: Brothers Against Guns, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights A.I.D.S., Ribbon of Promise, Trick Or Treat So Kids Can Eat, Soldiers Angels, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Circu Center SF, Feel The Music NY, Friends of the Oakland Animal Shelter, American Leprosy Missions, Blood Centers of the Pacific, the Bully Project, and the Greek Historical Society of the San Francisco Bay Area.    

Since 2004 we have participated in Act Smart, an intensive theatre-based program offered by the American Conservatory Theatre in collaboration with 20 high schools throughout the Bay Area. Artists lead free in-house workshops to introductory acting classes, the teacher receives curriculum materials, and students-who otherwise would have little exposure to the arts-attend A.C.T. student matinee performances at no charge.

View photos from recent shows, “How to Succeed in Business (Without Really Trying)” and “Urinetown.”