Rebecca Dumain’s Post

Theatre Enhances Cultural Awareness Celebrating National Arts in Education Week. Highlighting the importance of Theater and Theater Education. Theater is indeed a powerful medium for introducing youth to diverse cultures and perspectives, which enhances their cultural awareness and global understanding. Through plays and performances that represent various cultures, histories, and experiences, youth  gain insights into the lives and traditions of people from around the world. This exposure broadens their understanding and appreciation of different ways of life. By embodying characters from diverse backgrounds, youth learn to see the world from perspectives different from their own. This empathetic engagement helps them develop a deeper appreciation for others’ experiences and challenges. Theater often includes historical and cultural contexts that inform the characters and stories. Youth learn about different societal norms, values, and historical events, gaining a richer understanding of global cultures. Theatre introduces youth to various languages, dialects, and modes of expression. This not only enhances their linguistic skills but also deepens their appreciation for the subtleties of communication in different cultures. Working with peers and professionals from varied backgrounds in theater fosters cross-cultural collaboration and communication skills. This experience prepares youth to navigate and contribute to diverse communities effectively. Theatre often explored universal themes—such as love, conflict, and identity—through the lens of different cultures. This helps youth recognize commonalities while appreciating cultural uniqueness. Participating in or producing plays that focus on different cultural narratives helps youth develop cultural competence, a key skill for engaging respectfully and effectively with people from diverse backgrounds. By integrating theater into education, we help youth build the cultural awareness necessary to thrive in a globalized world. They learn to appreciate and navigate diverse communities, enhancing their ability to engage with and contribute to an increasingly interconnected society. For more information about our Focus on Education Program Click Here. https://lnkd.in/e_Jsva-R. #Theater #TheaterEducation #Education #ArtEducation #TheaterLife #Actors #Directors #Play #Playwright #FocusOnEducation #Anacostia #Arts #Culture #DMVArts @TheDCArts #DCArts #DCArtists

Performing arts students learn much more than how to march in line, how to memorize lines and how to play a C#. http://di.sn/6044ejyFq #DisneyImaginationCampus #DisneyPerformingArts #ArtsEducation

In my latest Dean Daily article, I talk about Dean College's underrated dance club that's open to ALL students: The Fusion Flow Society! Check it out here: #newblogpost #dance #journalism

Please join us in Groningen (Harmonie, exposition room) on March 6, 6pm for a theatre lecture by Kasia Lech (University of Amsterdam) on her latest book, Multilingual Dramaturgies: Towards New European Theatre (Palgrave, release date: 7 May 2024). While national theatre systems in Europe are predominantly national-language-specific, organized by and narrated in so-called national tongues, theatre made through and of interacting languages played crucial role in European theatres' histories. Today, multilingual theatre has become again increasingly important, underpinned by diverse and often interconnected factors: minority and regional languages, globalization, new technologies, migration, disability contexts, internationalization of mainstream institutions, European projects, and new educational initiatives. Across all these contexts, artists engage with critical ethical questions related to difference. How can theatres in Europe represent, reflect on, put to debate, and shift paradigms of otherness in various European past(s), present(s), and future(s)? And how can theatre imagine new paradigms for difference beyond the us/them framework? Focusing specifically on multilingual theatre created by migrants, this talk will discuss how theatre artists have used multilingualism to (re)imagine histories, as a site of present-related activism, and a platform to imagine futures. For more info: https://lnkd.in/eDrTT8mQ. #universityofgroningen #ICOG #SPOTON

What is a futures literacy lab (FLL)? A question I get regularly and one that seems to always necessitate making the distinction between a field, like futures studies, and the methods/tools used to acquire knowledge about the field. FLL are a tool. I like to call it one example of the microscope of the 21st century, the use of action-learning/research collective intelligence knowledge creation methods to 'surface' the invisible (tacit) and enable analysis, meta-cognition, and transitions. There's plenty of searchable material regarding FLL, but I thought perhaps it would be interesting to draw attention to the excellent article by Pedro de Senna, Futures literacy theatre lab with unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors: practical and ethical considerations. Check it out: https://lnkd.in/e8mSuvUg Pedro de Senna; Irianna Lianaki-Dedouli

Theatre Encourages Critical Thinking Celebrating National Arts in Education Week. Highlighting the importance of Theater and Theater Education. Theatre fosters critical thinking skills in ways that can often complement and even enhance the traditional English curriculum. Youth dissect scripts and characters, exploring motivations, themes, and subtext. This deep analysis parallels literary critique, but with the added dimension of interpreting and embodying characters. Theater often involves solving complex problems, from staging scenes to adapting scripts. This encourages youth to think creatively and develop innovative solutions, skills that are transferable to many areas of life. Engaging in discussions about characters’ decisions, moral dilemmas, and thematic elements requires youth to form and defend their viewpoints, fostering a more nuanced understanding of complex issues. Acting requires youth to adopt different perspectives, which enhances their ability to evaluate situations from multiple angles and consider diverse viewpoints. Reflecting on their own performances and those of others helps youth assess their own work critically, recognize areas for improvement, and understand the impact of their choices. Theater combines various elements—text, movement, emotion, and design—into a cohesive performance. This process teaches youth to integrate multiple pieces of information and viewpoints into a unified whole. Live performance provides instant feedback from the audience and peers, allowing youth to quickly assess the effectiveness of their choices and adapt accordingly. Theater not only nurtures critical thinking but also creates a dynamic and engaging environment where youth can apply these skills in practical, real-world contexts. By integrating theater into education, we empower youth to think more deeply and approach problems with greater creativity and insight. For more information about our Focus on Education Program, visit us on the web at https://lnkd.in/e_Jsva-R. #Theater #TheaterEducation #Education #ArtEducation #TheaterLife #Actors #Directors #Play #Playwright #FocusOnEducation #Anacostia #Arts #Culture #DMVArts @TheDCArts #DCArts #DCArtists

"Research shows that visual arts students grow in the areas of self-efficacy and originality than non-arts students. They were also able to maintain higher levels of focus in their regular school classrooms for longer periods of time than their non-participating peers." (Catterall and Peppler) "Research has found that students in low-income schools who participate in dance programs tend to experience heightened self-esteem and social skills." (Mason and Chuang) It's great to see research that supports what those of us in the arts have always known. That high engagement with the arts improves every facet of a student's educational life: academic, social, emotional, physical. Whether it was dancing in my living room, playing trumpet in middle school, or all of the talent shows, plays, and musicals in our high school "cafetorium," each of those experiences made me a better student and a better person. Are students getting a well-rounded, K-12 arts education today? #artseducation #socialemotionallearning #academics #publicschools

#SIX CHARACTERS LIVING THEATER IN SEARCH OF AN AUTHOR W AI TING FOR GODOT TAKE THE EVEN TAKE THE ODD "Theatrical improvisation is the genius of consciousness. It is not so much a single faculty, like reason, memory and fantasy, among others as it is a coordinating power that monitors the data of experience. It is a living thing that functions as part of the free spontaneous movement of spirit, adjusting, correcting, qualifying, shaping the materials moving toward form yet still in suspension." - Luigi Pirandello* * Sicilian Nobel prize winning dramatist, novelist, poet and short story writer whose greatest contributions were his plays. #Six Characters in Search of an Author #String Theory Composition and Music Education #Theater Arts and the Genius of Consciousness 1. moral and purely rational concepts but also 2. empirical concepts and emotions related to our ordinary experience. #Neuromancing the Philosopher’s Stone #Literacy and Culture #Epic sports #Media Art and Experience #Production Companies #The Mistress in the Masterpiece #Online study Guide

***New Mixed Methods Autoethnographic Theater Publication Alert*** Appearing in the 9(1) “Journal of Mixed Methods Studies” issue, A mixed methods article for researchers to view. “A Mixed Methods Autoethnographic Theater: Extending Pedagogy and Research Through the Development of a Sámi Land Acknowledgment” is its name, Innovative and evocative, it earns its well-deserved acclaim. Authored by Anna CohenMiller, Tove Ness, and Rose Martin in line, Through research and artistry, their paths intertwine. With stories and methods, they pave the way, For deeper understanding in research today. In the still of an auditorium, a song takes flight, Voices blending, echoes through the night. An ancient yoik of Sámi land, A chorus rising, hand in hand. In a dance studio far and wide, Youth twist and turn, movements collide. A pepeha danced with breath and grace, In this space, connections embrace. Three voices, a journey unfolds, Stories of land, of hearts and souls. Anna, Tove, and Rose, with wisdom they shine,  Integrating research and art in a seamless design. Through mixed methods, autoethnography’s stage, Evocative tales on each page. Dramaturgy’s light, a beacon so clear, Bringing the distant ever near. Deep emotional threads, we feel, Each story told, so raw, so real. From the Sephardic chants to Aotearoa’s song, A shared humanity, wherein all belong. Complexity in simplicity found, Land acknowledgment, extremely profound. Voices reluctant, yet so strong, In the silence, the echoes prolong. Dialogues of respect, of history’s weight, Navigating discomfort, a shared fate. In academia’s halls, a call to see, The rich, diverse tapestry. Practical steps, to honor and to heed, Acknowledgments in action, a vital need. From Trondheim’s lands to wider skies, A global community rises, with open-eyes. Theoretical roots, arts-based research, Bochner, Ellis, and Leavy, guide the search. Rigor and emotion, hand in hand, Bridging theory and practice, a unified stand. Normalize and grow, the call is clear, For a future wherein all voices appear. A shared journey, side by side, Acknowledging land, in unity we stride. This open-access article can be accessed via the following link: https://lnkd.in/gGDAZXwz

New Welsh Curriculum – Do you need Film lesson ideas? If you find yourself teaching film for the first time, perhaps are out of your comfort zone, rest assured you already know more than you think. The new Welsh curriculum has created fresh challenges and opportunities for schools and pupils in relation to the expressive Arts: Dance, Drama, Film and Digital Media, Music, and Visual Arts. All of which should be ‘linked by a common creative process and transferable skills’. With this in mind, here are some suggestions for teachers delivering film and the 'Areas of Learning and Experience' for the first time.  https://lnkd.in/gVTVc3WA