When you walk in late to Michael Burnett’s Speech Arts class, be prepared to be greeted with a round of applause, and become immersed in the warm-up routines.

This class is in one intimate circle, so everyone can see each other, eliminating ambiguity amongst the students.

A hush falls over the class, and the students descend into a quiet moment, when they can reflect on the day, and expel any negative energy that would hinder their class participation.

Then, suddenly, the entire ambiance shifts from serious recollection, to one of high energy joy. Each student, including class guests, must do a unique dance that the whole class must mimic.

Burnett has taken the stage of A-Building, in what could be called Act II of the school’s iconic Acting and Speech Arts Program.

Previously working as an English I and Poetry teacher, Burnett this year took over the Acting classes, Speech Arts classes, and the annual musical (this year’s production, already under way, is the Tony-award winning In the Heights) upon Cindy Nejame’s retirement. It was her Act I.

The transition to Act II was easy and “seamless” as Burnett, who worked alongside Nejame for 16 years as her choreographer and assistant director, describes it.

Burnett is bringing changes to the program. “If I tried to do exactly what [Niz] was doing, that wouldn’t work” he said.

Speech Arts is an interactive class that combines acting, communication, and self-expression to heighten the students’ self-awareness and strengthen their self-esteem.

The class takes form in improv sketches, mini plays, and various group activities that focus on building communication skills for the students who usually take the backseat, ending with the highly anticipated “Movement to Music” show.

Burnett is making changes to the content of the class, not the structure. “We are going to change the focus of semester two to use communication skills more for social issues,” Burnett said.

One of Burnett’s students, Allison Novella, who has taken Speech Arts last year with Niz, said, “[Burnett] has done such great things with keeping the sacred traditions alive in A304.”

Novella added that the two have different teaching styles, but they both “work in the speech arts environment beautifully.”

It takes immense talent to juggle Burnett’s harried day. While teaching Speech Arts for two periods, he also teaches Acting I & II, English 9R, directs the school’s annual play, and is the resident director of the Brookfield Theatre for the Arts, where this fall he is producing and directing a production of Marsha Norman’s awarding-winning play, ‘night, Mother.

Matching his hectic schedule, Burnett describes his teaching style as “chaotic.”

“[Speech Arts] is pretty high energy, and I’m asking students to go outside their comfort zone and not hold back. I have to model that while I’m teaching,” said Burnett, who has the look of a Broadway choreographer or an actor living in Greenwich Village.

Like his students, Burnett’s colleagues are just as impressed by what he brings to the DHS table. Melissa Teel, who not only taught with Burnett in the Freshman Academy but counts him among her friends, said he has the ability to connect with people “no matter their age, race or anything that makes them different.”

“He does not just care about the surface level of who a person is,” she continued. “He wants to learn the root of what makes you who you are, which makes him a great teacher and a great friend.”

Outside of teaching, Burnett is a licensed acupuncturist, practices Eastern philosophy, and meditates. He uses these to center his focus, which is needed with such a chaotic environment as teacher and director.

Some around campus have described Burnett — with his spiritual tattoos, his jeans and knotted scarves — as a kind of Renaissance man.

“I like to learn about a bunch of new and different things, and when I do this, I don’t skim the surface,” he said. “Once I feel like I learned it, I [want to] move on to something else.”

Teel, sounding like an Eastern philosopher herself, said it’s his creativity and what he sees in students that keeps him moving.

“He has such an eye for potential,” she said. “He doesn’t see it as what it is; he sees it as what it could be. Michael sees life from a different dimension. He understands that everyone has a story and he is interested in hearing that story and making the story come to life.”

Despite his many side adventures, though, Burnett has found his home tucked away in the hustle and bustle in A-Building, which reverberates with the sights and sounds of creativity.

“I think I have landed in the one place that’s going to stick for a while,” he said.

Editor’s Note: Features Editor Natalie Ceciliano contributed to this report.