“Who run the world?” – Beyoncé
Well if that world is the ISL art subjects and performances, then Beyoncé was right; it is Girls. A somewhat depressing sentiment to start with, though the song should be a celebration of female power (sorry Beyoncé, I thought it would be funny).
I’ve noticed in recent years that every arts class has a majority female population and so few boys ever engage with the performing arts. It never used to strike me as abnormal, “that’s the way things are.” is what little me thought. As an avid lover of performance and as a person who ages (shocking, I know), however, I’ve recently been thinking about why this is, quite frequently.
In terms of stage performances, I think the general consensus is that Covid messed it all up, because I recall how many boys there were in Little Shop of Horrors in 2018 (nine, if you were wondering). After that, we didn’t really have a proper performance until 2021 in which time it seemed the male population of the arts had fallen off the face of the planet. I believe there were two boys in Beauty and the Beast so gender-blind casting was the big thing that year.
When it comes to the arts subjects, and as someone who has done all of them since Year 10, I can confidently say the classes are majority female, with perhaps the exception of music that is usually closer to 50/50. Now, I cannot speak for the numbers before Covid, but having known many of the graduating art classes, I believe they were similar to our present day.
In an interview with a male student, he brought up the point that in a real world and historical context, so many artistic professions are occupied by men, whether it be painters, musicians, or actors. So how come our school represents the opposite numbers? Why is it that so many girls bounced back after Covid but hardly any boys did?
In an interview with Mr Wallace, the points of masculinity and vulnerability were raised. It is undeniable that getting up on a stage and putting yourself out there is immensely vulnerable and you cannot fault somebody for not wanting to. Yet still, so many girls do it.
Mr Wallace suggests not only that “there’s an equation between femininity and the arts”, but that confidence plays a key part. Perhaps girls are allowed to indulge and build confidence because arts subjects are thought of as “feminine” but boys are prevented from this.
Perhaps toxic masculinity prevails again and we’re all doomed.
Well maybe we are, but I’m not so sure it’s really that bad. My personal theory is it’s all about role models. Clichéd, I know, and perhaps a little flawed as practically all the arts teachers are male, but when I say role models, I really mean friends. It takes a lot to participate in something alone especially at school age when you’re still finding yourself and your confidence. I don’t want to say that girls mature faster than boys, there’s no need for that. But based on the evidence, it seems that girls are just more comfortable participating in these groups and being themselves.
What really matters at the end of the day is that we rectify it. I’m not the right person to ask how, but to any important people reading (faculty, I’m looking at you); maybe ask the boys why they don’t want to join, and see what you can do about it. If all the school does for equality is getting girls into STEM (which is admittedly vital) then it’s not true equality.
Plus I’m really sick of playing guys in shows.
