The Anima! workshop makes discipline, following instructions and paying attention a matter of fun and games (that have serious intent).
Theater here becomes a microcosm of real life: a laboratory for the development of life skills: mutual respect, conflict resolution, discovering ourselves and encountering others.
Many of the exercises demand concentration skills and demonstrate the student’s ability to increase the duration of their attention span/ concentration. Students are taught to open up spontaneously and then to quiet down quickly and at will.
Good acting flows from good reception and response- it requires us to be exquisite listeners. This workshop will therefore explore qualities and nuances of communication: silence, gesture, posture, sound & rhythm, intonation, timing, language, and positioning (arrangements of people in a space).
The team building exercises teach brainstorming, trust, following directions and group problem solving. This prepares them to express creative ideas individually, in pairs, and in groups. Students create short dramatic scenes in groups, which they will present to the class as a whole.
“The students were euphoric. They wanted to share their feelings of the experience with anyone that would listen. Their enthusiasm was contagious and others in the school wished for a similar experience.”
- Janet Gonzalez, teacher, Bangor Alternative High School, Bangor, MI
“Your work with these students has had an indelible and positive impact on their character, self esteem and outlook on life.”
Ann Hinsdale -Knisel, Director, M.S.U. Cooperative Extension
& Dionardo Pizaña, Assistant Dean of Students, Sienna Heights College
Fees: $500 plus travel
