to script for his students. During last year’s performance 

of The Scarlet Letter, for instance, he asked his students 

to conduct research in a variety of secondary literature 

about public shaming to make the topic—and the 

emotions surrounding it—more real to them. This fall,  

students are tackling high school favorite The Great 

Gatsby from Daisy’s perspective. Through this approach, 

Charles hopes his students will be able to uncover new 

layers of complexity in the novel’s treatment of love and 

money. 

During the three-week Library Dances unit, students 

spend approximately 50 percent of their time on stage 

rehearsing for the performance. In that sense, the class is 

more than just a new way to teach classic literature—it 

also guarantees that every student in the Upper School 

participates in live theater at least once before they 

graduate. More than 100 Laguna students have already 

gone through the program successfully. 

The dance styles that students perform are influenced 

by the type of dance State Street Ballet is studying at 

any given time. The four professional dancers who are 

present throughout the rehearsals then join students 

onstage for the final performance. 

Charles, who is also the Executive Arts Editor of the 

Santa Barbara Independent, feels passionately that this 

collaboration between Laguna students and professional 

artists in the Santa Barbara community represents 

an important and distinctive feature of the school’s 

experiential education program. 

“Having access to these professional artists is 

priceless,” Charles says. “When the dancers compliment 

students on their work, it’s a kind of praise and 

recognition that I can’t give them.” 

Library Dances at Laguna has already gained 

significant recognition. The audience for last season’s 

production of The Scarlet Letter included nationally 

known choreographer William Soleau, as well as the 

directors of the State Street Ballet, Rodney Gustafson 

and Leila Drake Fossek. 

“This is a real opportunity for our school—for our 

students—to be noticed,” Charles says. “It gives a whole 

new meaning to the term ‘literary arts.’”

 Library Dances lessons are  

 50 percent classroom,  

 50 percent art.

12     LAGUNA BLANCA MAGAZINE

136982_LagunaBlanca_FallMagazine2016_ProofFINAL_v2.indd 12

9/20/16 9:48 AM