Meet an Artistic Creator Who Pursues Multiple Paths

Profile and photos by Dov Weinstein Elul ‘24

In our student voices series, “Get to Know,” Dov Weinstein Elul ’24 introduces us to fellow Poly students he meets around campus.

When Sadie Schoenberger ’25 was in 9th grade, she decided to try out for the Upper School musical Curtains. Since she didn’t have much acting experience, her role was relatively small. But when one of the leads suddenly dropped out, the director, Ms. [Mariko] Watt, asked her if she could step up and take on the larger role. Although she had to learn 93 lines in just a few days, Sadie did it. Learning the lines in the short timeline gave her a newfound respect for the craft and stage production. “It gave me a whole new outlook on theater… Having to go on last minute, I gained an appreciation for every behind the scenes thing that was going on.” 

Following this experience, Sadie told Ms. Watt that she would like to work with her as an assistant director. The very next year she did just that for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. “The teachers at Poly are so lovely and encouraging. I feel like my relationship with them has gotten me into a lot of things.”

Choreography & Dance

Theater wasn’t her only performing arts venture at Poly. Sadie has loved dance ever since she was a young girl. Although she doesn’t consider herself a great dancer, she’d think about dance a lot. “I’d picture these [dance] duets in my head that I could not do. [But other people,] totally could.” With her vision, Sadie began sketching the dances she had in mind on her phone, and proposed them to Mr. [Sam] Turner, the dance teacher. Sadie’s ideas came to life as she was able to choreograph and perform a dance with 18 dancers. 

Filmmaking

Sadie created a 15 minute promotional video for that dance that was presented at assembly this year. Unexpectedly, making this video opened a new creative door for her: film making. She participated in a five week long film intensive program over the summer of 2023 at Northwestern University, and has since created a short film which she entered into a student filmmaker competition. 

“Poly gives kids a space to do a bunch of different things and you can be in so many spaces at once. I’m so grateful for that.”

Sadie noted that one of the best things about Poly is how encouraging it is for students to pursue many different interests. She joined the production staff of the 2024 Upper School musical, The Prom, and was excited to work with Ms. Watt again as Assistant Director. Combining her interest in film, she created a behind-the-scenes documentary of the production.

Senior Year

She is looking forward to a very immersive senior year in the arts. “I am incredibly excited for my senior year at Poly (creatively) for a multitude of reasons,” she said. “For one, now that I have fulfilled my graduation requirements, I will have the opportunity to explore more arts-focused classes, including “Advanced Topics in Writing: Voice and Character,” “Advanced Topics in Writing: Poetry and Poetics,” visual arts, my senior year of dance with Mr. Turner, and “Advanced Musical Theater Performance” with Ms. Watt. I am most looking forward to the Afternoon of Student Choreography, where I’m hoping to combine my interest in choreography and film together to create a senior piece. Ms. [Iman] Stulz has also reached out to me with the idea of organizing a Poly Film Festival next year, which I hope comes to fruition.”