Hutchison’s Performing Arts Program Instills Confidence and Creates Community

John Michael Joiner, our director of performing arts, and Mary Helen McCord, our assistant director, are ready to help Hutchison girls come together and create magical performances on the Wiener Theater stage.

For Joiner, the most valuable lesson any young person can learn from theatre is empathy. “Theatre gives young people the opportunity to imagine what it would be like to live in someone else’s shoes… to walk around in their day-to-day life, to imagine their thought process, their feelings, their emotions, or their choices that might be different,” he said.

Through productions like Moana JR. and Hadestown: Teen Edition, Hutchison girls will have a lot of opportunities to get involved in theatre this year. These experiences might not go the way our girls hope, but according to Joiner, this helps them grow stronger. “We want to encourage our girls to fail big and fail forward. Things don’t always go the way you imagine, and outcomes can be different from what was expected. You have to continue to push forward,” he said.

From confidence to problem-solving to work ethic to resilience, the skills developed in the performing arts extend far beyond the stage. “Theatre provides a lot of everyday life skills for now and in the future. It’s something that girls can take with them, whether they want to pursue the arts or go into any career,” McCord said.

And for McCord, the most rewarding part is watching a girl find her voice. “I love watching someone open up. I know sometimes in the arts, it can be scary to talk in front of people or try something new. What I enjoy most is seeing that obstacle be overcome or seeing a spark that comes from realizing they can do something that they couldn’t do before,” she said.