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Culturespot MC "Accessible Arts" by Karen Shafer March 29, 2017 “What I really loved, what really excited me, was being able to teach through the arts, being able to really connect with kids and reach kids who might not get a chance to see things like theatre and opera if we don’t bring it to them.” “ …Even in the midst of a negative situation, [InterAct] creates something positive…” “Such experiences can help children learn empathy and communicate more effectively. ” < Back to Press

Online Professional Development for MSAC review: Responsive Playmaking Thank you for reviewing this virtual professional development session for addition to InterAct Story Theatre’s AiE Roster listing! InterAct Story Theatre has a wide range of professional development options for educators, artists, and nonprofit organizations. About this workshop This virtual professional development workshop is the first in a series of three sessions, with asynchronous learning in between through materials provided by InterAct Story Theatre on our web portal & Google classroom. The virtual workshop submitted here is Day One of this three-day program, and is intended as an overview of the strategy. Prior to the session, participants completed a short pre-workshop survey, and this workshop was tailored based on the results of the survey. This iteration of professional development of Responsive Playmaking is conducted by InterAct Story Theatre’s Artistic Director Ali Oliver-Krueger with a cohort of teaching artists, classroom educators, and veteran InterAct Story Theatre artistic staff members engaging in continuing education. A Technical Rider outlining the program coordination and tech rehearsal process is uploaded here, as well as the slides of the Powerpoint. In addition to these materials, participants receive a pre-workshop and post-workshop survey as well as access to asynchronous materials through our web portal, our Google Classroom page for this workshop, or the workshop Padlet (in place of a traditional printed teacher packet). CLICK HERE FOR TECHNICAL RIDER CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO CLICK HERE FOR SESSION 1 POWERPOINT SLIDES

Arts Education & Arts Integration: Classroom Workshops. Elementary School. Available Online! ELEMENTARY SCHOOL These are just a sampling of the many arts-integrated workshops we do each year. All of these workshops can be expanded into a 2-, 3- or 4-day classroom residency in which the students explore the content area in depth through the arts. This allows us to provide a sequentially structured arts learning experience so we can really maximize student learning and create a deeper, more meaningful arts experience. REQUEST MORE INFO Arts Education & Arts Integration: Classroom Workshops We are constantly designing new workshops! In fact, most of the workshops you see here were originally designed because someone asked us, "Hey, InterAct...can you do a workshop on ___________ to address __________ objective?" WE LOVE THIS. It's really our favorite thing to do. The answer is almost always, "Sure. Let's put our heads together and see what we can create!" So, if you would like an arts integration experience for your students that you don't see here, please contact us or request more info so we can design something for you! Drama Grades PreK-5 Available Online! BOOKS ALIVE Books come to life as students explore age-appropriate text from children's literature or folklore through creative drama, and dramatize the text in their own words. Books Alive workshops can be designed to fit a variety of themes, topics, world cultures or curricular goals. Please contact us with your questions and ideas! Maximum 25-27 students (1 class) for each 45-minute session. Grades K-5 Available Online! RESPONSIVE PLAYMAKING & PLAYBUILDING Through a variety of creative drama and short-form devising techniques, participants investigate a text, theme or curriculum topic as artists, and then collaborate in devising a short story, drama, or theatre piece in the classroom (or virtual classroom!). This is a great way to foster collaboration, social emotional skills and 21st century skills through theatre while building content knowledge. Responsive Playmaking can also be booked as a residency with multiple sessions with or without a sharing or informal performance. All stories are submitted for InterAct’s annual KidStory Theatre Festival, a celebration of stories written by kids for kids...and the best of the best are performed by professional actors at our festival in May!. The workshops are modified for varying grade levels. Maximum 25-27 students (1 class) for each 45-minute session. Grades 4-5 Available Online! A VISIT TO A COLONIAL VILLAGE The classroom is transformed into a colonial village as students take on their roles as colonists, each with a colonial occupation. Students learn and share information in-role about their occupations and display their wares in this fun and informative creative drama experience. Maximum 25 students (1 class) for each 60-minute session. Grades 4-8 Available Online! GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY Students explore mythology, the gods of Olympus, and the some of the cultural influences behind Greek and Roman mythology. Maximum 25-27 students (1 class) for each 60-minute session. Grades 3-6 Available Online! TALL TALES: STORIES OF WESTWARD EXPANSION Tall Tales are exaggerated stories about the taming of America's West. Students dramatize key moments of a Tall Tale and explore its relationship to our nation’s growth. Maximum 25-27 students (1 class) for each 45-minute session. DRAMA GAMES FOR THE SCIENTIFIC BRAIN Students build content knowledge and vocabulary through experimentation and drama gaming. The workshops are designed to meet specific benchmarks and indicators. Please contact us so we can design a workshop for you! Recent workshops have dealt with such topics as Motion and Force; Tectonic Plates and Earthquakes; The Digestive System; Atoms and Elements. Music & Creative Opera Grades 2-6 OPERABUILDING Students learn the basic elements of opera and explore how opera uses music and drama to tell a story. InterAct's General Director Ali Oliver leads students through this lyrical adventure. Maximum 25 students (1 class) per 60-minute session. Note: This innovative and exciting workshop can be expanded into OPERAtunities for Writing, a 3-5 day residency linking creative opera with Writing and Reading Literature or Reading Informational Text. Grades 3-8 SIGHTS AND SOUNDS OF WEST AFRICA Students are introduced to the instruments and sounds of West African music. Students play instruments and learn chants and songs. Maximum 25 students (1 class) for each 45-minute session. Grades 3-8 DRUM CIRCLE Students are given a hands-on multicultural experience by teaching them the basics of African palm drumming. Maximum 25 students (1 class) for each 45-minute session. Dance Grades 2-6 OPERABUILDING Students learn the basic elements of opera and explore how opera uses music and drama to tell a story. InterAct's General Director Ali Oliver leads students through this lyrical adventure. Maximum 25 students (1 class) per 60-minute session. Note: This innovative and exciting workshop can be expanded into OPERAtunities for Writing, a 3-5 day residency linking creative opera with Writing and Reading Literature or Reading Informational Text. Grades 3-8 SIGHTS AND SOUNDS OF WEST AFRICA Students are introduced to the instruments and sounds of West African music. Students play instruments and learn chants and songs. Maximum 25 students (1 class) for each 45-minute session. Grades 3-8 DRUM CIRCLE Students are given a hands-on multicultural experience by teaching them the basics of African palm drumming. Maximum 25 students (1 class) for each 45-minute session. Early Childhood Elementary School Middle & High School Students < Back to InterAct in Schools

The Legend of Pufferfish Pat A Tall Tale for Mad Times Click Here to read the review by DC Theater Arts September 13, 2017 “The goal of The Legend of Pufferfish Pat was to create a work in which families can hear characters share their tips and ideas for managing angry feelings and see characters modeling different anger management strategies. But don’t tell the kids that. The kids will just know that they are having fun!” Click Here to read the review by DC Theatre Scene September 14, 2017 “The most impressive aspect to the piece is the clever manner in which various themes are subtlety reenforced....Also impressive is the manner in which a secondary theme regarding gender plays out. Without preaching or knocking a brick wall onto the audience, the script also makes a point of encouraging us to embrace choices outside of traditional gender expectations.” Click Here to read the review by MD Theatre Guide Five Stars! September 13, 2017 “Pufferfish Pat was a Top Five Show of the Week , Pufferfish Pat is charming and funny with versatile actors!” Click Here to read the review by Theatre Bloom Five Stars! September 11, 2017 “Ali Oliver-Krueger’s play is smart, simply put. It teaches a lesson without feeling preachy or pedantic, and it is easily accessible to kids of all ages, even relevant to adults! The words and descriptions that Oliver-Krueger uses to accurately express what it feels like to have an anger attack are vivid and extremely relatable. Oliver-Krueger expresses the importance of anger being a normal human emotion and the fact that it can be healthy to feel it while acknowledging the fact that there are healthy ways in which it can be expressed. She manages to do this in a fashion that is accessible to young audiences without feeling too childish and it makes the story full of heart and great learning opportunities.” < Back to Press

Season 3 of Wheaton Family Theatre Series Wheaton Family Theatre Series Season 3: October, 2017 through May, 2018 The Town That Cried Avalanche October 2017 The tiny mountain town of Avalanche, California is rocked with controversy: how can they balance the need for progress with taking care of the environment? And how can they even talk about it when everyone is mad at each other? Can they come together to save the town--before the mountain comes tumbling down? Inspired by Montpelier Elementary’s Grand Prize winning story at InterAct’s 2017 KidStory Theatre Festival. Best for ages 5 and up. Lesole’s Dance Project:Zulu, Gumboot and Street Dances from South Africa November 2017 Dance your way to the tip of the African continent! Experience three different African cultures through dance, from traditional Zulu village dances through modern moves with a South African flair. Founded in 2003 by native South African dancer Lesole Maine, the company has performed to acclaim throughout the U.S. and locally at the Kennedy Center, Wolf Trap, Smithsonian and area schools. All ages. A Family Literacy Fiesta: Books Alive! January 2018 InterAct Story Theatre's Artistic Director Ali Oliver-Krueger leads kids and adults alike in a fun-filled, interactive afternoon bringing stories to life through drama. We'll act, sing, and dance our way through a rollicking story, and maybe even create some stories of our own! A Family Literacy Fiesta: Dancing Our Way Through Books February 2018 Explore a kid-friendly folk tale through creative movement and dance. Led by Kelly King, founder of CityDance Center at Strathmore and Contradiction Dance, kids get to practice reading skills while moving, dancing and sharing stories with our families and friends. What a fun way to dance away the winter blues! Best for ages 3 and up. Little Red Riding Hood March 2018 Seymour Barab’s funny and sprightly one-act opera delights youngsters as we follow Little Red Riding Hood’s merry jaunt through the woods to Grandmother’s house. Join us for InterAct Story Theatre and Victorian Lyric Opera Company’s fresh take on this classic children’s opera...and watch out for that sneaky Big Bad Wolf! Best for ages 4 and up. Skher Brown and the Dancing Warriors Ensemble April 2018 Capoeira Angola is a unique Afro-Brasilian art form that draws from dance, martial arts, music, and stories of distant lands. But it’s more than that--it’s a cultural doorway into the world of others both like us and different from us! Skher Brown and the Dancing Warriors mesmerize audiences with acrobatic choreography and transport students across the Atlantic Ocean to learn about this unique culture. All ages. 2nd Annual KidStory Theatre Festival May 2018 A theatrical celebration of stories written by kids for kids! All year long, InterAct Story Theatre artists create stories with kids, and invite kids to share their epic stories with us. Each May, we choose the best of the best and transform them into short plays, musical numbers, and vignettes performed by our InterActors. Season 6 Season 5 Season 4 Season 10 Season 2 Season 1 To keep up on the latest news about InterAct’s Wheaton Family Theatre Series Season 10 and get reminders about our next program dates, join our mailing list . We also invite you to check out our past seasons by clicking on any of the season buttons! < Back to Community Page Season 7 Season 8 Season 3 Season 9