Meet The Drama Student On The Front Lines, Schooling Kids On Schoolies

This post is presented in partnership with CQUniversity.

It’s the rite of passage as highly anticipated as (and sometimes even more memorable than) graduation itself: schoolies.

When done right, schoolies can be the perfect release valve following the high-pressure exam period; the birthplace of treasured memories you’ll hold onto forever.

When done wrong… yeah, it’s a real bummer.

“There was one night on the Gold Coast where we were at a dance party and my hair got pulled and I was just being pushed around by guys who were drunk and being idiots, and it was not fun.”

That’s the first memory of schoolies that comes to 20-year-old CQUniversity student Elizabeth Buckley. She’s now trying to help school leavers get the experience she missed out on through the uni’s long-running Choices: Applied Theatre Project.

A third-year student at CQU’s Mackay campus, Elizabeth has gone from a supporting player in Choices to its theatrical director.

She describes Choices as “a funny little show” in which a girl gets sucked into her television, Poltergeist­-style, and travels through the different channels, learning how to take care of herself and make responsible decisions at schoolies along the way.

CQU drama students have toured the production around Queensland since 1999, in an attempt to engage suspicious young audiences in a way that doesn’t immediately turn them off.

Seriously, that's no easy feat.

“Some schools might think they’re getting a lecture or something like that, which isn’t what you want to do with a group like grade 12s, because they can be a bit skeptical and cynical,” Elizabeth told Student Edge.

“We like to bring out the little children in them sometimes with the humour. Most schools love it; they laugh their heads off, they’re smiling, and they’re very attentive for the hour it goes for, which is really good.”

Some of the advice smuggled in through the goofy production involves how best to travel to schoolies (either by getting a lift from mum and dad or being aware of the risks in distracted driving, driving with fatigue and drink driving), what to know about hotels and bonds (the latter being a real pain point for many, many teens), the benefits of establishing a buddy system, and the process that goes into making and selling drugs.

“Specifically this year, I’ve added something into the script about ice, because that’s becoming very prevalent in North Queensland,” said Elizabeth.

“[The show is] funny, but I like tackling the bigger issues. Having gone to schoolies myself, this is a big thing for me.”

Choices also works closely with Sgt. Nigel Dalton from the Mackay Crime Prevention Unit of the Queensland Police Service, who reports back on the real-world influence their show is having.

“We heard a statistic [from Sgt. Dalton] that there was only about two or three people who were actually arrested this last year at schoolies, which is a significant drop,” Elizabeth said.

“We like to think they’ve taken on our advice and from that we think they have actually realised there are better ways to have fun at schoolies than drinking and drugs and all that.”

Despite the distance between Mackay and the theatrical hubs of Sydney and Melbourne, Elizabeth believes the Choices program has been the perfect training ground for the budding actress.

“I think it’s been a really good opportunity for me, especially because after I graduate there’s not going to be a platter of work for me to do, so it might mean putting on my own show or my own cabaret,” she said.

“What I love most is that we do two productions a year and what makes it so special is that they get directors and basically industry professionals in to direct our shows.

Now officially struck with the acting bug, Elizabeth looks forward to wrapping up her degree and eventually moving to Sydney to continue her career.

“When I got to grade 12, there was nothing else I could see myself doing other than drama. So I decided, ‘It’s gonna be hard, but I really want to do it and that’s what I want to do with my life.’"

Good choice.

Photo supplied by Elizabeth Buckley.

Open up your universe and consider a degree at CQUniversity, just like Elizabeth. For more information, go to cqu.edu.au