Drama teacher says students blocked from performing suicide-themed play; district cites safety guidance

Liz Pullman, the Whitehall drama teacher, told the board that her students have spent months rehearsing a production of I Don't Want to Talk About It but were allowed to attend the state festival while being told they could not present the play to the community under the school banner. "They have been told that they can attend festival and present this play at festival, but they cannot present it to the community," Pullman said, adding that the cast has worked since October and that the district did not follow its usual review process.

Pullman said she sought reviews from state agencies and was redirected between offices. She told the board she contacted the Office of Public Instruction and was directed to DPHHS; a DPHHS reviewer told her that their review applies to performances in a school setting and not to after-school or community productions. "I was told by DPHHS ... that this would only pertain to his review only means something if it is in a school setting, not if it's outside of school, after school," Pullman said.

A community member, Dory Westhoven, read a letter from playwright Bradley Hayward urging support for productions of the play and urging producers to include suicide-prevention resources. Reading Hayward's note, Westhoven quoted his recount of a 14-year-old who said, "If I had not seen this play, I would not be alive." Westhoven told the board the play has been produced worldwide and "has not only changed lives, it has saved lives." She urged the district not to censor productions and warned she could withhold future ballot support if the district does not remain inclusive.

The superintendent described the district review process and said supplemental materials are routed to the high-school principal for review, per policy. The superintendent told the board she reviewed the script and watched a performance video and determined that suicide is a central theme rather than incidental material. She said state guidance and OPI (Office of Public Instruction) standards require schools to include messages of hope, resilience and how to seek help when suicide is depicted. For that reason she said she could not recommend the play be presented to the student body in its current form. "As such, I could not recommend for it to be the school play," the superintendent said.

The district also consulted Carl Roston, identified in the meeting as the state suicide prevention coordinator; the superintendent reported his recommendation: "I don't recommend any type of suicide specific performance being done for a student body." The superintendent and principal explained that the safety expectations and supports required for student-audience performances differ from those for community theater, and that the district cannot brand or run a production it deems unsafe for students.

Pullman said outside supports had been volunteered, including a decompression session and a presenter who would talk with audiences after a community performance; she said the author offered to provide recorded material in advance and that the production would include suicide resources. Parents at the meeting asked why the review occurred late in the rehearsal cycle and whether parents could be given content notices similar to permission letters for films. Susan Mercer, who identified herself as a parent of drama students, said she was "confused" and concerned that students had invested months of rehearsal time before the district's review noted concerns.

Board members and administrators said the district's policy requires principals to approve supplemental materials before rehearsals begin; the superintendent called the missed early review "a failure" and said the district should prevent similar last-minute conflicts in the future. The superintendent added that an appeal process exists; she noted that "everybody always has the ability to appeal, to the superintendent and the board of trustees."

The board discussed options short of a school-branded production: a community theater could present the piece with appropriate supports and a facility-use agreement, or the district and the teacher could revise the production to meet the OPI guidance for student audiences. The superintendent said the school cannot "bear the liability" of a production it deems inappropriate for students and that parents may choose whether a student participates in a community production.

The meeting did not contain a board vote to ban the play outright; rather, administrators held the production from being presented to the student body and outlined avenues for appeal and for community-based performances. The board moved on to other business after public comment. The superintendent said the district would tighten review timing so supplemental materials are evaluated before rehearsal begins.

What happens next: parents and staff may pursue the superintendent-level appeal described at the meeting; community groups interested in staging the play would need to apply for facility use and run the production without school branding if they want the same cast but a community presentation.