By Anne Ruisi
Bruno Montessori Academy’s popular theater program is rising to a new level with the addition of two seasoned actors to work with students in first through eighth grades.
Rachel Burttram is the school’s new full-time drama teacher and her husband, Brendan Powers, is assisting. They are veteran performers and members of Actor’s Equity Association, the stage actor’s union, and eligible for membership in the Screen Actors Guild.
“They have just been a perfect addition,” said Susan Downs, the academy’s head of school, who noted their background and professional experience made them a perfect fit for the job.
“They are already knowledgeable about drama in every aspect and had so many new things to offer, such as creating short videos or teaching poetry,” the school thought they could offer more experiences to the students, Downs said. “We’re just thrilled that they’re here and excited about the opportunity and the kids will have.”
Bruno Montessori has had a thriving theater program for several years, including producing two musicals each year.
When the previous drama teacher resigned shortly before the start of this school year, Downs was left scrambling to find a replacement. She contacted the theater department at Birmingham-Southern College, which recommended Burttram and Powers.
“The joy right now is that we’re both in a position to be available to do this,” Powers said, adding that the couple are taking a team-teaching approach to instruction.
The couple have presented workshops together over the past 20 years for people of all ages, but this is the first time they’ve taught at a Montessori school, he said.
Productions on the Horizon
Besides classes, Burttram and Powers will work with the students to present a play in the fall and a musical next spring. “The Hunt for Milo Gatto,” is the fall production, which will be performed on Oct. 27. It’s a play the couple wrote about a team of detectives who are pursuing a jewel thief who keeps leaving riddles and word games for them – and the audience – to solve.
The play is silly and fun, interactive with the audience and has quirky characters among the 20 featured roles. Auditions will be open to students in first to eighth grades, and everyone who auditions will participate, Powers said. Rehearsals will begin the week of Aug. 28.
Just as important as the actors are the students who will work backstage and help with costumes, painting, prop management and perhaps a stage manager, Burttram said.
In the spring they’ll present the musical “The Lion King Jr.”
Participating in theater classes – which will be tailored to different age groups – and the performances offer many benefits to the children, Burttram said.
“It’s not just about training somebody to learn how to say lines in a play,” Burttram said. “Theater teaches respect for each other. Theater teaches you to hone your listening skills. Theater gives you the confidence to stand up in front of a group and speak.”
It will help the students find their voice and make connections, and it will give them a safe place to share their opinions, she added.
Like many actors, Burttram and Powers participated in high school plays before going to college.
Having acted in high school theater is “one of the reasons this job is really fun, because I’m reliving a lot of my youth as I’m with (the students),” said Burttram, a Pleasant Grove native whose family moved to North Carolina at the end of her sophomore year in high school before returning about a year later. “And you know, it’s just very fun to be back in this environment.”
She and her husband earned bachelor’s degrees in fine arts, she from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and he at Niagara University in Western New York. Powers received a master’s degree in English from St. John’s University in Queens.
“Once I graduated from there, I sort of jumped into the acting scene in New York,” he said.
Credits
Powers has appeared on TV in “Graceland” and “Bloodline” and was associate producer for the short film, “Emma’s Fine,” in which his wife was the principal actor.
After earning her degree, Burttram got a job as an apprentice for a season at the Tony Award-winning Actors Theatre of Louisville. The acting industry is a trade, in a way, and “being an apprentice is a wonderful way to learn the craft from professionals in a real hands-on setting,” she said.
Her television credits also include portraying Betty Grissom, the wife of astronaut Gus Grissom, in seven episodes of National Geographic’s “The Right Stuff” on Disney+ and appearing in episodes of “Burn Notice,” according to imdb.com.
The couple also have worked on stage in many productions and were longtime actors with the Florida Repertory Theatre in Fort Myers, which is where they met in 2007. They married at the theater in 2013.
The couple moved back to Birmingham about 18 months ago to be closer to her parents in Pleasant Grove. It was in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and there were few opportunities for work, so they produced a series of online murder mysteries they called “Tiny Theatre.” “The Hunt for Milo Gatto” is one of the productions they wrote.
When the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild went on strike in July, Burttram and Powers were weighing their options of what they could do.
“What a blessing it was that Bruno Montessori happened to be looking for a drama teacher,” she said.
Besides presenting theater workshops, the couple have worked as teachers or instructors. Powers taught high school for a year after college and Burttram taught at the former Children’s Dance Foundation in Birmingham. And years ago, she taught a dance class at Bruno Montessori.
“I think that’s what’s so fun about an experience like this or the other teaching opportunities that we’ve had in the past is to be in a room with young folks. That enthusiasm and childlike curiosity and imagination reinvigorates you as an artist to see things in brand new ways,” Burttram said.
