MNPS Voices: Joshua Binkley, Drama Teacher, Wright Middle School

For Joshua Binkley, theater is more than a class or an after-school activity. It’s a place where students discover confidence, creativity and a sense of belonging.

Binkley, the drama teacher at Wright Middle School, knows the impact firsthand. Now in his 12th year teaching at Wright, Binkley once walked the same halls as a student. He attended the school as a seventh- and eighth-grader and still has his old yearbooks, sometimes bringing them out to show students who are surprised to learn their teacher once sat in the same classrooms.

After attending Wright, Binkley went on to Glencliff High School. It was there, during his junior year, that he was encouraged to try theater and quickly fell in love with it.

His Glencliff drama teacher created a space where students felt safe to experiment and express themselves. For Binkley, that experience was transformative, and today he works to re-create that environment for his own students.

Performing in front of others is one of people’s biggest fears, and in middle school, it can feel especially intimidating. Binkley spends the first weeks of each class helping students build relationships with one another through games and activities that encourage teamwork and trust.

Instead of focusing on perfection, Binkley encourages students to take risks and embrace mistakes as part of the learning process.

“If you’re going to mess up,” he often tells his students, “mess up big.”

Through that philosophy, students begin to build confidence not just as performers but as individuals, too.

Creating a Community

Each year, Binkley and his team bring productions to the Wright Middle School stage. This year’s musical, The Descendants, features a cast and crew of nearly 70 students and staff working together behind the scenes and under the spotlight.

The story, based on the Disney Channel film, follows the children of famous Disney villains as they navigate identity, friendship and belonging. Binkley said the message of the show resonated strongly with him and the school community.

“At its core, the story is about how we’re better together,” he said. “With our school being so diverse, I thought it was a great message for our students.”

Productions like The Descendants bring together students from across the school. Athletes help build sets. Color guard members perform in scenes. Choir students contribute musically. Others help with costumes, lighting and stage management.

For Binkley, that collaboration is what makes theater so powerful.

“Theater is all about the community,” he said. “Everyone matters, the actors, the crew, the people building the sets and helping with the box office. Without one person, the whole thing doesn’t work.”

Overcoming Shyness, Building Confidence

Binkley is also quick to credit the team of teachers and staff who help make the productions possible. Behind every show is a group of educators who volunteer their time and talents to support the program, including Binkley’s wife, Wright Middle School librarian Katie Binkley, who serves as the production’s stage manager.

“I’m the face of the program, but none of this happens without my team,” Binkley said. “They believe in what we’re doing, and they show up every day for these kids.”

Over the years, Binkley has watched students grow from shy beginners into confident performers. Many have even gone on to pursue theater beyond middle school, including at MNPS’s Nashville School of the Arts.

Regardless of where their path leads, Binkley hopes every student leaves his classroom with something lasting. Middle school, he believes, is a critical time for students to explore who they are.

“They’re trying to figure out where they belong and who they want to become,” he said. “Theater helps them learn to be themselves and trust that their group — their people — will find them.”

For Binkley, helping students discover that sense of identity and connection is what makes the work meaningful year after year.

The Wright Middle School drama program will present its spring musical, The Descendants, on May 1 and May 2 at 6 p.m., with a final performance on May 3 at 3 p.m. Performances will take place at the school and are open to families and the community.