For the past five months I had the privilege of working on a volunteer consulting assignment for the Epic Theatre Ensemble through a placement made by the New York-based Taproot Foundation. Taproot organizes teams of experienced professionals to work with non-profits,including arts organizations, in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. Taproot set up our team to help Epic with board recruitment and development.
I enjoyed working with Epic, not only because of the people, but because of their contributions to arts education in New York City public schools. Melissa Friedman, a co-founder, actor and teaching artist leads Epic's initiatives in arts education. In 2009, Epic's after-school Shakespeare Remix was one of fifteen after-school programs in the country to receive a Coming Up Taller Award presented by First Lady Michelle Obama on behalf of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities.
As our Taproot project came to an end I asked Melissa about the concept of teaching artists and the future for arts education in New York City.
What is the difference between a teaching artist and a drama teacher?
A teaching artist uses theatre to explore issues or questions throughout a curriculum so that the arts may be used to reach out to all students. For example, history and literature can be explored through theatre.
A teaching artist and a drama teacher have different responsibilities. Drama teachers are either 'artsy' or 'taskmasters' while teaching artists try to maintain a balance between teaching and rigor. You have to find artists who are willing to bridge both worlds. Teaching artists also challenge their students to take risks. Teaching artists expect a lot of their students but they also love and care for them
How does a teaching artist work with the school where s/he is assigned?
The assignment partly depends on the school's priorities and requirements. Chelsea High, for example, is not an arts school, but every student takes drama in the 10th and 12th grade. There we will work with the drama teacher and an assistant principal. At Urban Academy, an arts school, we work with a Partnership Coordinator .
Have many of your students gone into careers in the theatre?
Epic is still a young company. We're going into our tenth year. In 2001 we started with ninth graders, and in 2005 our first classes graduated. While several students have gone on to pursue careers in theatre, that is not our goal, nor is it a measure of success. We are more interested in the skills that theatre builds in students. We have former students in college,in the air force, and even pursuing careers as teaching artists.
What are some of your concerns about arts education in New York City?
Public policies should reflect that the goals of theatre education should be more central to all education. The question now is: are schools working? Test scores are only one way to know. Creative problem solving questions often come up in job interviews, and theatre education helps form a basis for creative problem solving.
I have a four year-old son, and I can say, from looking at schools that parents do not want to lose the arts; children become more engaged in the lower grades. The Obama Administration seems to understand the importance of the arts to education. The arts are not likely to disappear from New York City schools; the city is the arts center of the world.
