Open Forum

I have to commend you all for working so hard with the students who show (or who might not have) shown an interest in the arts. I know that many young lives have been turned around by finding a theatrical community.  

I think that Readers Theater (or Theatre--reference previous discussion--) is a performance method that is universally underused, especially in the classroom outside of drama class. I've had great experience with doing plays in community venues as readings, also. Audiences are often surprised when they find that they can be engaged by actors with scripts in hand. And actors love to participate--no lines to learn, less rehearsal time, work on acting chops. And it's a great way for playwrights to workshop plays.  I sometimes wish that more theater could be brought into the classroom vs. the students being brought into the theater. 

So, I guess my questions to this group are as follows: is RT a feasible concept for education outside of drama classes? If it is, how do we open up that window? And is there any chance in any of your districts for cross-pollination between the theater departments and the rest of the curriculum.  (I think I'm kind of fixated on that because my undergrad years at CMU were spent learning to foster collaboration among scientists, IT folks, and the artsy crowd.)  

I'd be curious to know what you all think.

------------------------------
Jean Klein
[Playwright/Founder HaveScripts/BlueMoonPlays]
Virginia Beach VA
------------------------------

RT is absolutely feasible in the core content classroom. I have seen it used in all subject areas (my particular favorite was atoms discussing why and how they would bond with other atoms....), and with students from first grade through high school. In my opinion, the problem is that few educators, either in their preparation programs or through professional development, are introduced to the practice and do not know of its existence.  Some arts organizations have professional development programs that work with teachers/schools to introduce integration techniques including RT but, overall, these programs are either few and far between or only taught as 'one-off' workshops that have little proven impact on day-to-day teacher practice. 

------------------------------
Suzanne Katz
Washington DC
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 12-10-2018 19:16
From: Jean Klein
Subject: Readers Theater

I have to commend you all for working so hard with the students who show (or who might not have) shown an interest in the arts. I know that many young lives have been turned around by finding a theatrical community.

I think that Readers Theater (or Theatre--reference previous discussion--) is a performance method that is universally underused, especially in the classroom outside of drama class. I've had great experience with doing plays in community venues as readings, also. Audiences are often surprised when they find that they can be engaged by actors with scripts in hand. And actors love to participate--no lines to learn, less rehearsal time, work on acting chops. And it's a great way for playwrights to workshop plays.  I sometimes wish that more theater could be brought into the classroom vs. the students being brought into the theater.

So, I guess my questions to this group are as follows: is RT a feasible concept for education outside of drama classes? If it is, how do we open up that window? And is there any chance in any of your districts for cross-pollination between the theater departments and the rest of the curriculum.  (I think I'm kind of fixated on that because my undergrad years at CMU were spent learning to foster collaboration among scientists, IT folks, and the artsy crowd.)

I'd be curious to know what you all think.

------------------------------
Jean Klein
[Playwright/Founder HaveScripts/BlueMoonPlays]
Virginia Beach VA
------------------------------

In its heyday, there were professional productions of readers theatre. In 1951, a company that included Charles Boyer, Cedric Hardwicke, Charles Laughton, and Agnes Moorehead performed Duan Juan in Hell, the third act of Shaw's Man and Superman.  The run started with a sold out performance at Carnegie Hall. A month later it moved to the New Century Theatre (now defunct) for 38 performances. A year later it was remounted at the Plymouth Theatre (now the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre) for another 66 performances.

Unfortunately, readers theatre has gone the way of pantomime, never taught and rarely performed. It is now seen as old fashioned and has been relegated to children. While this is great for kids where memorization can be an issue, it is a theatrical art form that should not be overlooked or forgotten.

I had the great opportunity to work with Fran Tanner, one of the leading authorities, authors, and artists in Readers Theatre. Her book Readers Theatre Fundamentals is a must read for anyone interested in the theatrical art form. She also incorporated devised theatre into her readers theatre performances which used scenes, songs, poems, choral readings, etc. all around a single theme. At no time was this a substitute for lack of memorization or less than a full-blown performance experience. She also taught classic pantomime, not the white-faced French mime, but how to tell a story without words set to music. 

As a side note: She was wicked at charades. A cast party was not complete without a gut-wrenching game of charades.

You might also want to check out Readers Theatre Handbook: A Dramatic Approach to Literature by Leslie Coger. It contains background and history of readers theatre; selcting and adapting material, examples of performances of readers theatre, and sample scripts. 

It is a lost theatrical form that deserves to be rediscovered and explored.

------------------------------
James Van Leishout
Olympia WA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 12-11-2018 08:11
From: Suzanne Katz
Subject: Readers Theater

RT is absolutely feasible in the core content classroom. I have seen it used in all subject areas (my particular favorite was atoms discussing why and how they would bond with other atoms....), and with students from first grade through high school. In my opinion, the problem is that few educators, either in their preparation programs or through professional development, are introduced to the practice and do not know of its existence.  Some arts organizations have professional development programs that work with teachers/schools to introduce integration techniques including RT but, overall, these programs are either few and far between or only taught as 'one-off' workshops that have little proven impact on day-to-day teacher practice. 

------------------------------
Suzanne Katz
Washington DC

Original Message:
Sent: 12-10-2018 19:16
From: Jean Klein
Subject: Readers Theater

I have to commend you all for working so hard with the students who show (or who might not have) shown an interest in the arts. I know that many young lives have been turned around by finding a theatrical community.

I think that Readers Theater (or Theatre--reference previous discussion--) is a performance method that is universally underused, especially in the classroom outside of drama class. I've had great experience with doing plays in community venues as readings, also. Audiences are often surprised when they find that they can be engaged by actors with scripts in hand. And actors love to participate--no lines to learn, less rehearsal time, work on acting chops. And it's a great way for playwrights to workshop plays.  I sometimes wish that more theater could be brought into the classroom vs. the students being brought into the theater.

So, I guess my questions to this group are as follows: is RT a feasible concept for education outside of drama classes? If it is, how do we open up that window? And is there any chance in any of your districts for cross-pollination between the theater departments and the rest of the curriculum.  (I think I'm kind of fixated on that because my undergrad years at CMU were spent learning to foster collaboration among scientists, IT folks, and the artsy crowd.)

I'd be curious to know what you all think.

------------------------------
Jean Klein
[Playwright/Founder HaveScripts/BlueMoonPlays]
Virginia Beach VA
------------------------------

I LOOOOVE Reader's Theatre and agree wholeheartedly with your sentiments about the qualities and training it affords.  Besides the performance benefits, Reader's Theatre allows me to develop a special series of Dramatic Writing lessons we call "The Writers' Room."  Similar to workshops I did in college and my other professional experiences in the business, the kids write both original and adapted scripts.  

Besides the literacy benefits, those with the interest to do so, can direct their own Reader's plays.  This process has proved so effective, that for the last several years, we've adapted several of these into our own "1940s Holiday Radio Show" that we've performed for the public.  We've collaborated with history classes, our Forensic Sciences classes, and even our CTAE classes to develop sound effect devices for our foley effects.

The only drawback to this type of work, at least at my school, is buy-in.  Even my advanced acting students either don't take the work seriously and/or they figure that since there is no need to memorize, they don't put in the same level of intensity to their performances.  They argue, that because it's not "Real Theatre", the audiences won't like it as much.  However, with enough prodding (and threats!) they usually come around.  As almost all kids are "money players," once they do get in front of an audience, they usually rise to the occasion.  I just wish I could spend more time DOING the work, and less time PERSUADING them to commit.  But such is often the case with students dealing with unfamiliar material.

One approach I've taken to help convey the challenges and importance of Reader's Theatre is in our unit we call "Children's Stories."  I have a large library of Children's Story books and encourage the students to bring in their own. Kids then take turns presenting these to the class and must use different character voices, mannerisms, and other techniques to "bring the stories to life."  It's easy for some kids and a great challenge for others.  Through this training, my student "ambassadors" have worked with our elementary and middle school feeders to help them learn core literacy skills.

------------------------------
Josh Ruben, M. Ed.
Fine Arts Head
Northwest Whitfield HS (dba, The Northwest Theatre Co.)
Tunnel Hill, GA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 12-10-2018 19:16
From: Jean Klein
Subject: Readers Theater

I have to commend you all for working so hard with the students who show (or who might not have) shown an interest in the arts. I know that many young lives have been turned around by finding a theatrical community.

I think that Readers Theater (or Theatre--reference previous discussion--) is a performance method that is universally underused, especially in the classroom outside of drama class. I've had great experience with doing plays in community venues as readings, also. Audiences are often surprised when they find that they can be engaged by actors with scripts in hand. And actors love to participate--no lines to learn, less rehearsal time, work on acting chops. And it's a great way for playwrights to workshop plays.  I sometimes wish that more theater could be brought into the classroom vs. the students being brought into the theater.

So, I guess my questions to this group are as follows: is RT a feasible concept for education outside of drama classes? If it is, how do we open up that window? And is there any chance in any of your districts for cross-pollination between the theater departments and the rest of the curriculum.  (I think I'm kind of fixated on that because my undergrad years at CMU were spent learning to foster collaboration among scientists, IT folks, and the artsy crowd.)

I'd be curious to know what you all think.

------------------------------
Jean Klein
[Playwright/Founder HaveScripts/BlueMoonPlays]
Virginia Beach VA
------------------------------

Check out Rosalind Flynn's website, Arts Education Online

Artseducationonline		remove preview
Arts Education Online Arts-integrated Professional Development. Educators can learn the highly-successful classroom drama strategy Curriculum-Based Readers Theatre online. View this on Artseducationonline >

  
She was a great resource for me, and you can message her right from this forum. I pull from her Reader's Theatre lesson to review theatre history, but of course you could create and perform for any content. You may also wish to explore this great website for other strategies to use drama across curricula. Drama-Based Pedagogy | Drama-Based Instruction

Utexas		remove preview
Drama-Based Pedagogy | Drama-Based Instruction Drama-based pedagogy can be integrated into numerous curricular areas. It can be used to introduce a new concept or theme, check for knowledge, or extend your student's learning. It can be used to explore a character's motivations, infer a story's outcome, or illuminate facts and concepts. View this on Utexas >

------------------------------
Cassy Maxton-Whitacre
Theatre Department Coordinator
Fishersville VA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 12-10-2018 19:16
From: Jean Klein
Subject: Readers Theater

I have to commend you all for working so hard with the students who show (or who might not have) shown an interest in the arts. I know that many young lives have been turned around by finding a theatrical community.

I think that Readers Theater (or Theatre--reference previous discussion--) is a performance method that is universally underused, especially in the classroom outside of drama class. I've had great experience with doing plays in community venues as readings, also. Audiences are often surprised when they find that they can be engaged by actors with scripts in hand. And actors love to participate--no lines to learn, less rehearsal time, work on acting chops. And it's a great way for playwrights to workshop plays.  I sometimes wish that more theater could be brought into the classroom vs. the students being brought into the theater.

So, I guess my questions to this group are as follows: is RT a feasible concept for education outside of drama classes? If it is, how do we open up that window? And is there any chance in any of your districts for cross-pollination between the theater departments and the rest of the curriculum.  (I think I'm kind of fixated on that because my undergrad years at CMU were spent learning to foster collaboration among scientists, IT folks, and the artsy crowd.)

I'd be curious to know what you all think.

------------------------------
Jean Klein
[Playwright/Founder HaveScripts/BlueMoonPlays]
Virginia Beach VA
------------------------------

Original Message------

I have to commend you all for working so hard with the students who show (or who might not have) shown an interest in the arts. I know that many young lives have been turned around by finding a theatrical community.  

I think that Readers Theater (or Theatre--reference previous discussion--) is a performance method that is universally underused, especially in the classroom outside of drama class. I've had great experience with doing plays in community venues as readings, also. Audiences are often surprised when they find that they can be engaged by actors with scripts in hand. And actors love to participate--no lines to learn, less rehearsal time, work on acting chops. And it's a great way for playwrights to workshop plays.  I sometimes wish that more theater could be brought into the classroom vs. the students being brought into the theater. 

So, I guess my questions to this group are as follows: is RT a feasible concept for education outside of drama classes? If it is, how do we open up that window? And is there any chance in any of your districts for cross-pollination between the theater departments and the rest of the curriculum.  (I think I'm kind of fixated on that because my undergrad years at CMU were spent learning to foster collaboration among scientists, IT folks, and the artsy crowd.)  

I'd be curious to know what you all think.

------------------------------
Jean Klein
[Playwright/Founder HaveScripts/BlueMoonPlays]
Virginia Beach VA
------------------------------