Welcome Back, Everyone!
Jackie Avitabile
The Ed Theatre Club Officers would like to welcome everyone
to a new semester at City College! Last
night at the Cupcake Social it was wonderful to see so many new and familiar
faces.
I think it’s super exciting to
hear about all of the interesting and varied experiences that our fellow
students had this summer, and know that we are all coming back together to
continue the journey as grad students this fall.
My name is Jackie Avitabile, and I am one of the Ed Theatre
Club Officers. I am starting my second
year in the program, in Stream A, and plan to graduate in May 2015. What I have loved most about my time in the
program are all of the opportunities to gain hands-on experience in classrooms
and in the community. Sobha’s Devising
Theatre class this past summer was no exception—we spent the majority of our
class days creating and reviewing lesson plans in the morning and then
traveling to a transitional home and a senior center in the afternoon to
facilitate our lesson plans with participants there. Seeing the joy on faces ranging in age from 2
years to 82 years is a great reminder about why I decided to go to grad school
and what I love about teaching theatre.
After Devising Theatre, I spent the rest of my summer
working, traveling, and missing my friends from the program! I am excited to be back for my last year and
know that there are a lot of wonderful teaching and learning opportunities
ahead of us this semester. Here are just
a few of the things that I am most looking forward to:
1) Three chances to learn from the greats: talks with guest
artists Nilaja Sun and Amanda Gronich, and a process drama workshop with Cecily
O’Neill. I had the good fortune of
seeing Nilaja Sun’s No Child… in
Minneapolis and found this story about the impact that theatre can have on
urban students incredibly moving. And, I
am a huge fan of Tectonic Theatre Project’s work (The Laramie Project, Gross Indecency) so it should be fascinating
to hear from company member, Amanda Gronich, about their process. Cecily O’Neill, master practitioner, did a
process drama workshop here last January with the high school cast of The Inspector General, and it was
incredible, so this workshop is not to be missed!
2) The Ed Theatre Club is trying something new this year- a
Trivia Night(/possible Halloween Costume Contest?)! This October evening event will be a chance
to hang out with your friends in the field, win prizes, and show off your skills,
while also reviewing theatre facts for the Theatre CST and/or Drama in
Education midterm. Plus, all proceeds
will serve as a fundraiser for the program!
Should be an awesome night!
3) Ed Theatre Meet-Ups.
Stay tuned for specifics, but basically we were feeling like we don’t
get enough chances to hang out together and we want to meet up with y’all! Meet-ups may or may not include fieldwork
opportunities, chances to study attending theatre performances as a group,
etc! We want to hear your ideas for
meet-ups, so let us know what you would like to do!
4) The Little Mermaid at
P.S. 161. I had such an incredible time
co-directing Aladdin last year with
my Fundamentals of Teaching Theatre class.
I can’t wait to see those talented middle schoolers go underwater this
year as Ariel, Sebastian, and the rest of the crew.
Oh, Ed Theatre, I am so glad to be “Part of Your World”!
Have an amazing first month back, and we’ll see you soon!
And of course check out the fantastic items you can purchase with the Ed Theatre logo
-Jackie Avitabile, Ed Theatre Club Officer
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