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Figures of Speech Theatre’s Artist-in-Residence Programs give students a hands-on approach to literacy, help schools meet the State Learning Standards, and make learning incredibly fun!
FST offers a full “menu” of options tailored to grade level, with a success-oriented focus on creative problem solving, team cooperation, and an interdisciplinary approach to world cultures and art.
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Recognizing that assessment is essential to fulfillment of State Learning Standards, each program features its own teacher-friendly rubrics and evaluation tools to measure each student's achievement of the Learning Standards, especially in the areas of Visual and Performing Arts, and English Language Arts. See Full Learning Standards Fulfillment for more details.
A typical one-week residency kicks off with a dynamic performance of Jester Kings of Java, featuring authentic Javanese shadow puppets and masks. This jump-starts the imaginative process while providing students with a cultural context for their own work. Performer and Teaching Associate Ian Bannon then works with 4 classroom core groups, each of which meets for approximately 1 hour per day, for five days (five contact hours per student). Depending on the option chosen, students will design and build their own puppets or write their own scripts, then rehearse, learn constructive critiquing, and usually finish the week with performances for their peers.
Programs are accompanied by extensive classroom study guides, custom-tailored scripts, as well as assessment rubrics and student self-evaluation charts.
Residencies are tailored to your school's needs, incorporating any combination of the following program options:
The Language of Gesture: Japanese Bunraku Puppetry
Chinese Shadow Puppetry
World Trickster Tales in Shadow
Maine Studies: Abnaki Stories with Shadow Puppetry
Poems and Puppets
ACTION! CHARACTER! STORY! Writing Your Own Myths
Professional Development Workshops in Puppetry
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"Over 500 students in grades 3-8 in MSAD 75 were provided the opportunity to experience the magic that is Figures of Speech Theatre and not a single one of them has come out the other side untouched. This will be remembered as the year we all got to hold the story in our hands. Using puppets... shadows and Bunraku... to dramatize stories and gestures is an experience in learning that incorporates the whole person: the work touched every creative, verbal, cognitive, emotional and personal aspect of our students' school lives.
"Figures of Speech's residency was the best thing we could have done for our students and faculty in MSAD 75. We all discovered new things about ourselves and our "fellow players" and all the while we were smiling."
Sue Shaw, Director of Performing Arts, MSAD 75
"Thank you for leading your 'Language of Gesture' workshop for
the Kennedy Center's
'Adventures in the Arts' series. The teachers' responses were very
positive. Please keep us informed about your activities so we can
have you back!"
Lynne Silverstein, Coordinator, Special Projects, The Kennedy Center,
Washington, D.C.
“Figures of Speech Theatre...would make a wonderful addition
to your staff development program..."
Sandra T. Long, Consultant, Maine Department
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