Quote of the Day: Top five reasons to participate in the arts:
1. It builds your self-awareness, confidence, and creativity.
2. You learn the art of cooperation through group story-telling.
3. You get to make something – physical sets and props, a brand new story, create characters.
4. You make friends.
5. It’s fun, and funny, and you get to hang out with people who love to entertain, tell stories, and be part of a creative team!
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The above picture is from my Spring Theatre classes. I had 21 students in the elementary group, and 12 in the middle school group. We wrote a play together, used minimal set with the boxes and a few props. The kids created their own characters or took the parts of Millie and Willie, and a few others that I used to introduce the story. This summer, I’ll be teaching classes again in the Brainerd lakes area, Monday-Friday, July 13-24. Classes will be held at the Dryden Theatre at Central Lakes College. The space is generously provided by the CLC theatre department, and they are also handling all the registration.

Theatre workshop for elementary kids (entering 1st-4th grades) 9:00-10:00 am. Our theme is tall tales, using story ideas from our area like Paul Bunyan and Big Foot. The kids will create their own stories and characters as they tell their tales around a campfire. We’ll also decorate t-shirts and make things for our set. Performance for family and friends will be on July 24, 9:30 am. To register, call 218-855-8199, cost is $65.

Theatre workshop for middle school kids (entering 5th-8th grades) 10:30-12:00. The students will create stories and characters using the theme of going to camp, tall tales like Paul Bunyan, Big Foot, and others. They can tell the story alone, or work in groups. We’ll have a performance for family and friends on Friday, July 24, 11:00 am. To register, call 218-855-8199, cost is $75.

*New this session! I am offering a class for kids in high school at CLC July 13-24, Monday-Friday, from 1:00-2:30 pm. This class is for both playwrights and actors. We’ll read a classic play together and discuss it. Write and work on our original scripts, and provide voices and actors for each play. If you’re not a playwright, you can help others and be a reader/actor. We’ll also work on theatre skills and have a public reading of our plays on Friday, July 24, 1:00 pm. To register, call the box office at CLC, 218-855-8199, $75 per student.

Go. Create. Inspire!

Journaling Prompt: Tell a story from your camping days. Did you go to a sleep away camp? Did you go on camping trips with family? Have you written any tall tales?