In a world where people are always criticized for things they do, it is important that people be able to express themselves. People should be allowed to enjoy the freedoms that the First Amendment gives us without fear of retribution. In the arts, people are always criticized by someone; there always seems to be somebody waiting to argue or tell an artist they’ve done something wrong. The artist has the right to express himself and everyone else has the right to not go to certain plays, art shows and dance performances.

In the 1960s, a new dance craze, “The Twist,” was sweeping the nation. The popular song and dance by Chubby Checker was considered suggestive and inappropriate to many people. School administrators believed it encouraged inappropriate behavior in students and tried to ban it. This went against the students’ right to free expression. Anyone can see if you go to a school dance that times have changed in the way of dance and the amount of supervision. Students have the right to dance how they please, and they shouldn’t have school administrators getting in the way.

There are many plays and musicals that have been considered scandalous by critics. Two suggestive theater pieces: “Rent” written by Jonathan Larson and “Spring Awakening” by Steven Sater. Both display themes of homosexuality and sexual content. People will speak out against these productions, saying they shouldn’t even exist. All they see is the reality of the world that the writers incorporated into their shows; they don’t see the value in them. “Rent” is considered by many to show a sense of self-worth, family, love and individualism. Not to mention, “Rent” and “Spring Awakening” both earned multiple Tony Awards and “Spring Awakening” received a Grammy for best musical show album.

While some theatrical productions are considered inappropriate because of sexual related themes, others are criticized for religious reasons. This means that when people try to put a stop to these productions, they are attempting to take away someone’s right to express themself and their right to their own religious beliefs.

“Godspell” and “Jesus Christ Superstar” are two religion based musicals that are often disliked by churches. They seem to portray Jesus in a not-so-reverent tone. For example, in “Godspell” the man who plays Jesus is wearing ridiculous clothes and looks like a clown. They are believed to be sacrilegious and disrespectful. There was an argument at Davenport Central High Shcool over whether “Godspell” was appropriate to do in a public school. Many parents thought it was too religious to perform in a school. In the end they banned Godspell from being performed at the school again. I think that situation was blown way out of proportion. I have been in a production of “Godspell” and think it is a great show with a great message behind it. The show doesn’t say “This is what you need to believe happened.” It is only there to be fun and share a good message.

My philosophy: “If it isn’t hurting anybody, don’t sweat it.” There are so many bigger issues to solve that wasting energy trying to punish people for using creativity is just wrong. Discouraging students from participating in the arts can deprive them of developing talents they would not have otherwise. As a participant in many forms of art, I say that freedom of expression is important. If you don’t like something someone is performing, don’t go, don’t watch it. You have that right.