Why Pop Culture Loves the Toxic Drama Teacher Trope
There is a great tradition of depicting the archetype of the unbridled, emotionally exploitative acting teacher.
King Lear
The Children’s HourBlack SnowFameA Chorus LineNever!
High School MusicalGleeSummer Heights HighDrama HighRise
PEN15FamePEN15Bros
Trust ExerciseCycloramaThe Diary of Anne Frank
AnnieMake her drink a Mickey Finn!
AnnieYou stand out like a blue dot on a red field
Lady Bird
Don’t shrug!Don’t you dare shrug!
Even now—even now!—she is trying to give me an acting lesson
Jenny Singer is a student in the MFA Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa. Her work has appeared in Glamour, The Independent, the Forward, and the San Francisco Chronicle.
Enter your email address to receive notifications for author Jenny Singer
Success!
Confirmation link sent to your email to add you to notification list for author Jenny Singer
More in this series
Falling in Love and (Finally) Finding Queer Representation on a Telenovela
I know that their lips are touching, and that this is the first time it’s ever happened on a free-to-air telenovela.
What an Over-the-Top, Teen Cable Drama Taught Me About My Sexuality
I didn’t know—or think I knew—any visibly queer women, and watching these fictional women half-existing seemed both comforting and lonely.
What Mr. Miyagi Taught Me About Anti-Asian Racism in America
We Asians were in this thing—racist America—together.