Wednesday, January 14, 2009

January 13, 2009 - 1st Day Wrap Up

Hi All!

Sorry for the delay in blogging and thanks for the friendly reminder Zoe. So glad that you and Catherine are excited to hear about Adam and I's first day at North Kipling. We are excited to be at this diverse school and I am doubly excited because it is in my 'hood. (Rexdale for life!)

So things went very well, I think. Sona's class was an enthusiastic group and after they got over my crazy hair, things were a go. I introduced them to my multi disciplinary style with some drama games to get us warmed up and of course a vocal warm up. The drama games went over very well and it was great to hear them sing. I then read them a Yoruba story about the beginning of the world and Adam chatted with them about the elements of opera. I also spoke with them about the elements of storytelling which they were very well versed in having just finished their own West African stories. And I talked with them about my approach to collectivve creation (creating lots of material, putting it in a "basket" and then piecing it all together.) I broke them down into groups of 5 with the homework of coming up with one short story per group. I also challenged them to incorporate elements of what they have been learning about West Africa as well as create a myth that explains some natural element. They are also really excited about the idea of using djembe drumming in the show and Adam and I have decided that we will have some of the students drum (as they have learned a lot about drumming and have instruments at the school.)

Mubeen's and Amanda's classes combined were a great group as well. A different energy, a little more subdued, but for the most part keen. This group will take a little more convincing to board the art train, but I see a lot of potential. This class also has some vocal training as they were all in jazz choir, so it will be great to push them further with the singing. The class format was similiar to Sona's class, with drama games, a vocal warm up and then a story/ discussion about story telling and my approach to collective creation. I read this class a legend about Nanabush and the creation of the 30 thousand islands. They too were well versed in the elements of a story. I gave them the same assignment: in groups, create a story that explains a natural element.

It is clear from both groups, that we will have to sing every class in order to get them ready for the final performance. For the singing, it really helped when I get them to jump right before singing and Adam and I will be incorporating some movement with singing in order to get them in their bodies. We have also decided that we will emphasizing choral work for both classes as we don't want to single anyone out as some of the students are understandably shy about performing. So, that's it!

For next class Adam and I are looking for about 16 bars of a song we can teach the class (quickly) again, to really get them singing. This is an opera after all!

So, that's it. Looking forward to their stories next week.


Sedina

1 comment:

  1. Great news Sedina! It sounds like you had a ton of fun. I love your approach having the students create a story about a natural element. The drumming sounds fantastic and the kids sound like they have so much to bring to this program! Way to go guys. I will look into 16 bars of music for you - we probably can help out there!
    z

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