Jennifer Katona, Program Director Blog Post

As I sit comfortably in my home and begin to reflect on the question asked of me for this post I am most struck by how fast time goes by.  I cannot believe I sit having completed the fifth year of the program.  I am proud to see how strong the ensemble we have created is and how wonderful it is to too our alumni return to sit on panels, serve as cooperating teachers, teach courses and collaborate on projects now in their professional capacity.  I am continuously grateful for the dedication of the faculty (both full-time thank you SOBHA) and adjunct faculty and student teaching supervisors who make themselves available to our candidates well beyond their pay grade :).   Though I could talk at length about all the work of the last five --I wanted to take a minute to officially wrap up the Spring 2012 semester.

What a FANTASTIC year we have had!! Congratulations to all the graduates you have worked really really hard for 2+ years and deserve all the success we know is in front of you.

We have had great performances with Megan Ludlow leading the successful fundraising campaign for Raise the Curtain and her production of Really Rosie as well as Mollie Lief and company performing their wonderful youth theatre production of the Tortoise and the Hare and this year's Family Arts Day.

A big shout out again to Kat DeLapp and Sobha for a truly amazing event with over 150 members of the Harlem Community in attendance.

This semesters research share was an inspiration and I am excited for the field of arts education to begin to learn of the innovative research being done at CCNY by its graduates.

Thank you again to Club Officers Megan Ludlow, EJ Jewell and Christine Gonzalez-DeJohn for a wonderful semester coordinating the Johnny Saldana workshop, Mini Conference and the festive end of semester party.

June 25th the Program in Educational Theatre is proud to host the end of the year reception for the NYC Arts in Education Roundtable from 4-7 in the NAC Ballroom and we hope you can join us!!! Great way to network and learn more about the field at large.

We are excited to welcome 20 new graduates in the Fall -we had a lot of applicants this year and are very happy with the new cohort and believe they will be a wonderful addition to our ensemble!!

We are also excited to announce that in the Fall semester the Program in Educational Theatre will be piloting a new innovative approach to student teaching. We are proud to say we have hired Mina Hartong in a part-time capacity to oversee Student Teaching observations and seminar. We feel strongly that this new system will mainstream the student experience and strengthen the connection between K-12 classroom and our graduate work -welcome Mina!

If you are heading to Kentucky for AATE come back informed, if you are heading to the beach come back restored, if you are heading to the theatre come back inspired!!

Family Arts Day by Kathryn DeLapp

Family Arts Day By Kathryn DeLapp

Family Arts Day: April 28^th, 2012

Balloons blowing in the wind and a few well-placed signs were the only hint that it was anything but a typical, quiet Saturday morning in late April at Aaron Davis Hall on the CCNY campus. The lawn was clear, a few students were wandering around beginning their day, and the threat of rain was looming in the early morning. However, if you followed the brightly colored balloon trail you would soon be guided into a vibrant and wonderful space. The moment you opened the lobby doors to Aaron Davis Hall music and laughter would fill your ears. You would see children disguised as jungle animals frolicking around the space and you could even spy a clown or two making balloon animals. The Second Annual Family Arts Day was underway!

The Graduate Program in Educational Theatre at The City College of New York advocates reaching out to communities to create and share theatre opportunities for children. In our case, the surrounding neighborhood is West Harlem. Promoting play and creating dramatic outlets for all children is one of the foundations of the department.  It gives our candidates myriad practical opportunities to work in community settings.

Family Arts Day is one of those efforts. This annual event was specifically created to bring together the community through a free day of playmaking, arts and crafts, song, and theatre performances. It is the culminating event in the Family Arts Saturday program overseen and produced by Sobha K. Paredes, a faculty member of the Educational Theatre department. Under Sobha’s great guidance, the day would not have been such a success without the efforts of all of the student volunteers ― the unsung heroes of the day ― who dedicated their time and shared their artistry with the 150 children and adults that participated in the event.

The four-hour event was packed with exciting and engaging activities. This year, we were lucky enough to have Spellbound Theatre perform Wink, a shadow puppet performance. Two celebrity readers from BookPals were on hand to read aloud to the children. An interactive short play, Fable Talk, devised and performed by our very own Graduate Candidates as part of our Readings on the Road series was a big hit.  In addition to seeing performances, children and their families were also able to make their own instruments, create characters through mask making, sing along with Graduate volunteers, interact and play with a couple of creative clowns, get their faces painted by Art Department volunteers, and buy tickets for the Raffle which took place at the end of the day!

All in all the day was a huge success and it showed on all of the smiling happy faces of the families that were able to attend. The day was filled with joy and I, for one, can’t wait to participate and play in next year’s Family Arts Day!