With no stage, no storage and little space for productions, the Indian Land High School Drama Club faces several big challenges.

The key to having a good drama club amid the challenges of space and no stage is creativity, said advisor Nicole Hemric.

The school has a growing drama program that includes a club that meets weekly and one drama class offered during the spring. In the fall, the club meets after school once a week to learn about the elements of small theater productions, including improvisation, script writing and set design.

The 30-student drama club has met twice since school began, and they are already working to create a spring production Hemric said. Right now, the students are getting to know one another and working on building their self-confidence, she explained.

"Getting comfortable with themselves is a huge part of drama. Being a teen is all about image so they have a hard time with that," Hemric said.

The group has grown from 10 members last year. That first group created a one-act play that debuted in the art room during Indian Land High School's first annual Art Night last spring. Hemric plans a similar production this spring. Sets and costumes are minimal in a one-act play, she added, making it ideal for their small group.

"It teaches them how to create and work on the fly because in small theater it's so important to know every aspect you can of a production," Hemric said.

"In this environment we create something from start to finish. Their hands touch everything."

During the year, she hopes to have actors come speak to the drama club and, if funds are available, take them to see a live production.

Indian Land's drama club and courses are a new addition to the school, formed only five years ago by chorus teacher Caroline Collins. She focused largely on musical productions and was excited last year when Hemric took the lead and began exploring other aspects of theater with the students.

The entire art department, including the drama program, is growing as the school grows, Collins said, but it's happening in baby steps.

She looks forward to a point down the road when the school can support a full drama department.

"We're moving in the right direction," Collins said.