Shane MEIKLEJOHN

Shane Meiklejohn, Drama Educator

Below, you can see Shane on Sri Lankan TV
talking about Anything Goes at the British School
in Colombo, TV1 Sri Lanka (2018)

Shane in the news:Return to the Forbidden Planet in Metropolis Magazine, Japan (2015)Haunting of Hill House in the Yokohama Seasider Magazine, Japan (2016)Enter The Intruder in The Daily News, Sri Lanka (2017)Pygmalion Classic Comes Alive in The Daily News, Sri Lanka (2017)The British School in Colombo Presents Anything Goes in The Times Online-Sunday Times, Sri Lanka (2018)Taking Audiences Back in Time with Anything Goes - in Sunday Times, Sri Lanka (2018)

ABOUT

Shane Meiklejohn is from Brisbane, Queensland - the tropical, sunshine state of Australia.After leaving school, Shane’s passion for photography earned him a cadetship as a press photographer with a rural Australian newspaper, where he completed his apprenticeship after four years of service. Later he broadened his media interests, as a production researcher for a local channel of a national TV network. Academia beckoned him once again and he returned to university to study journalism and theatre.Seduced by the stage at university, he made Drama his career, teaching high school Drama in Queensland for many years in prestige boarding, single sex and co-educational schools before moving to Japan in 1998 to be a Drama/Theatre Teacher at Yokohama International School.Shane has been involved in community and repertory theatre for over 30 years first in Australia and then overseas - acting, directing, stage managing and back stage work. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Drama and Media Studies; a Graduate Diploma in Secondary Education (Drama) and a Master of Arts in Media Production (1st Class Honours) in the areas of scriptwriting and documentary production. Shane is presently looking into a PHD in Theatre Directing. He is a qualified Theatresports (Improv) Practitioner having been taught at the Loose Moose International Improvisation School (2001) by Keith Johnstone who wrote Impro for Storytellers and invented the improvised theatre games of Theatresports, which inspired the hit TV program, Whose Line Is It Anyway?In 2013, he was fortunate to train in the Japanese Dance Theatre form of Butoh with the acclaimed group Dairakukadan under the mentorship of Akaji Maro at their Butoh Summer Intensive in Hakuba, Japan. Akaji Maro is both a traditional and modern accomplished stage and screen actor who appeared in the Quentin Tarantino feature, Kill Bill.Shane was appointed Head of Drama at The British School in Colombo from 2016-2018 and then the Drama/Theatre Teacher & Director of the School Productions at Seoul International School in South Korea until July 2022. Today, he is teaching MYP Drama & Design at AOBA Japan International School and continues to explore all facets of theatre within the cultural aspects of his international community.Shane was also an IBDP Assistant Theatre Examiner from 2008-2016 and is accredited by the CIE to teach IGCSE Drama. He has a CertTESOL from Trinity College, London and is a certified Laughter Yoga Leader. Shane recently completed a Certificate in Puppet Therapy at the International Online Puppet Therapy Program with the Muñecoterapia School of Puppet Therapy, Barcelona, Spain and a Certificate in Lego Serious Play/Therapy with Progressive Play, Australia. He has been a member of the International Schools Theatre Association (ISTA) since 1999.Please view his LinkedIn Profile for his CVPrevious School Blog: Drama @ SIS SitePrevious School Instagram: Drama @ SISSocial media set up by Shane at previous Schools:Senior Drama @ BSC Twitter - now XDrama @ BSC Facebook PageBSC Drama on InstagramTheatre @ YIS Facebook Page

FILM & THEATRE

ACTINGYokohama, Japan
Improv Player - Improhama Theatresports Team; Yokohama Theatre Group (licensed Theatresports 2002-2004)
Bret - I Take This Man; Directed by Daniel Riley, Tanner Auditorium, Yokohama Theatre Group (2001)
The Stage Manager - The Soul Salon, Directed by Annie Bilton, Gaiety Theatre, Loose Sock Theatre (2000)
Waiter Two - On the Razzle; Directed by Annie Bilton, YC & AC, Loose Sock Theatre (2000)Toowoomba, Australia
Lucentio - The Taming of the Shrew; Directed by Gwen Hart, Toowoomba Repertory Theatre (1995)
Rev. Harper/Lieutenant Mooney - Arsenic And Old Lace; Directed by Gwen Hart, Toowoomba Repertory Theatre (1994)
Jeffrey - The Curious Savage; Directed by Gwen Hart, Toowoomba Repertory Theatre (1994)Brisbane, Australia
Macduff - Macbeth, Directed by Gail Wiltshire, Twelfth Night Theatre Complex (1988)
Guardiano - Women Beware Women, Directed by Allan Harvey; Avalon Theatre, Drama Department, University of Queensland (1988)
Noah - The Noah Play, Student Devised; Mayne Hall, Drama Department, University of Queensland (1988)
Boris Pishchik - Cherry Puree (based on The Cherry Orchard) Directed by Adrian Kiernander; Avalon Theatre, Drama Department, University of Queensland (1987)DIRECTINGAOBA Japan International School, Japan
10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse (2026)
Singin' in the Rain Jr (2025)
Sally Cotter and the Censored Stone (2024)Seoul International School, South Korea
Sidekickin' It (2022)
Mythical Beasts and How to Approach Them (2021)
Kim Arthur & The Nerds of the Round Table (2021)
The Nutcracker (2020)
Little Shop Of Horrors (2019)
Game of Tiaras (2018)British School in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Woyzeck (2018)
Anything Goes (2018)
Pygmalion (2017)
The Intruder (2017)Yokohama International School, Japan
The Intruder (2016)
The Haunting of Hill House (2016)
Spy School (2015)
Heroin Lies (2015)
Return to the Forbidden Planet (2015)
Superheroes (2014)
The Vampire (2014)
PlayBall/Chicago (2014)
10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse (2013)
Harry’s Hotter at Twilight (2013)
Xanadu (2013)
Harry Rings: Lord of the Potters (2012)
Metamorphosis (2012)
Women Beware Women (2012)
The Ghosts of Marvin Grange (2011)
Aftermath (2011)
Footloose (2011)
Fussin’ & a Feudin’ (2010)
Thoroughly Modern Millie (2009)
Robin Hood & His Band of Musical Persons (2008)
Captain Hook’s Revenge (2007)
Woyzeck (2007)
The Three Musketeers (2006)
Children of the Black Skirt (2006)
Rockpunzel (2004)
Honk! Jr. (2004)
Jack ‘n’ da Hood (2003)
Grease (2000)
The Piperman (1999)Yokohama Theatre Group, Japan
Black Comedy (2004), Gaiety Theatre
Fossils (2002), YC & AC AuditoriumChisholm Catholic College, Logan City, Australia
Romeo & Juliet (1997)
Cosi (1997)PRODUCTION MANAGEMENTYokohama Theatre Group, Japan
Artistic Director (2002-2004)

TECHNICAL THEATRE
As well as involvement in every single university and school production since 1987, the following semi professional plays:Yokohama Theatre Group, Japan
Stage Manager - The Soul Salon (2000) Directed by Annie Bilton, Gaiety Theatre, Loose Sock Theatre
Sound Operator - Waiting For Godot (1999), Gaiety Theatre, Yokohama Theatre GroupToowoomba Repertory Theatre Society, Australia
Sound Operator - Absurd Person Singular (1994), Repertory Theatre
Lighting Operator - A Doll's House (1995), Repertory TheatreFILMI have dabbled in film making quite a bit since I was 14 when I often grabbed my father's 8mm film camera. For further postgraduate study with my Masters in Media Production (Honours) at Griffith Film School I returned to film to explore storytelling and scriptwriting, producing a short documentary about my parent's first meeting for my final Honours Thesis.

Head in the Clouds (2009)
Documentary - Producer, Director, Writer, Co-Cinematography

Empty (2007)
Documentary - Co-Cinematography

7:15 (2007)
Producer - Crew

Spookbuster (1986)
8mm Short Film Parody - Director, Screenwriter, Cinematographer

Confusion (Early 1980s)
8mm Various Animated Shorts - Director, Writer, Cinematography

EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY

As humans we seem to constantly question our existence, our meaning and our passage through time. The Arts give us a creative opportunity to explore our dreams and scaffold our existence without prejudice.As Sir Ken Robinson, international advisor on creativity and innovation states, education is stifling creativity, because we rely too much on preparing people to work, rather than to ‘think creatively’. I believe in child centred education where students are involved in learning from a hands on perspective. In Drama, students should be challenged to engage in integrated learning rather than simply be passive learners. Arts Education should be part of the fundamental backbone to the school curriculum to ensure we have creative thinkers in the future!My teaching, especially in Drama and Theatre, revolves around the use of motivators and improvisational games that can be used to advance student learning in a fun non-competitive way. I have extensive experience in Improv having been trained by Theatresports inventor, Keith Johnstone in Canada.In lessons, I believe it is important to ensure that there is a balance between group processing of information as well as individual expression, and each segment must be debriefed with appropriate feedback - a system which is wholeheartedly student centred. I strongly believe that service learning is another area in which students can use drama, especially through theatre in education (TIE),to reach out to those around them and express the values that are important to our every changing society, to teach intrinsic human values - whether in-school to other/younger students or within the wider community including parents and families members.While not a ‘digital native’ as some youth are, I am a well versed ‘digital immigrant’. I use technology widely in class especially video, both interactively for review in one to one tasks and collectively as an educational tool to demonstrate theatrical styles or for projected display in multimedia performances. I’m also familiar with online digital tools such as QLab, Threads, Vimeo, Wayground, Youtube, Zoom as well as many theatre apps for education, plus educational platforms such as Engage, Google Classroom/Sites, LP+, Managebac, Naviance, Office 365, PowerSchool, Toddle, Turnitin, and Veracross while I also use blogging, wikis and a Theatre Instagram and/orFacebook group to inform and interact with my students.My involvement in theatre both on stage as an actor and off stage in technical roles, has been an essential foundation to my years in drama teaching. Having spent many years in smaller schools with exceptional facilities, I have had the opportunity to explore technical aspects of theatre with my students from light rigging to stage construction - and this hands on approach to both technical theatre and stage acting is an important factor in developing well rounded theatre practitioners. On top of this, I have been fortunate enough to oversee the renovation of drama spaces and theatre black boxes for many of my schools. Inservice plays an important part in any teacher’s work, and my involvement has been extensive from courses in arts management, dramatic skills, theatrical styles, directing, technical theatre, video production, information technology, playwriting, curriculum and pastoral care.As we know, the world is becoming a smaller place through the ever-expanding tentacles of technology, but the human family of this globe continues to grow in multitudes. Young people as they develop into adulthood tend to reach out to contemporary fads, forgetting the importance of their own culture, which lies within the larger framework of a diverse global people. Being international is important in this seemingly multicultural world, but so too is the identity of one’s home country and its rich tapestry of celebrations. Education should celebrate this too, and Drama is the tool to explore this ritual of life.As an experienced teacher, I have a commitment to the ongoing formation of young people as responsible and wise adults.I believe in a holistic curriculum, where not only sedentary academic lessons, recreation and sports are important keys, but also the opportunity to indulge in creativity and social interaction through imagination and personal expression in the Arts - where youth have an opportunity to grasp their dreams in their hands and not be afraid to present their ideas and talents to the world around them. A place where they can believe in themselves - and then when they really use their imagination in the art form - they will strive for even greater goals.That’s the joy of educating - but more importantly the joy of educating young people through the creativity of the Arts!(Donald) Shane Meiklejohn
2020-26