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All of us in a fourth grade figuring out the gestures together!

April is Autism Awareness Month

This is a call to parents, caregivers, and educators with children on the Autism spectrum to encourage and embrace performance practices, and to Teaching Artists to tweak their practice to maximize the success of these students. Theatre is a terrific way for children with Autism to have a structured environment in which to learn and practice interactive social behaviors. Moreover, the process of learning basic performance concepts revolves around unpacking and identifying gestures, body language, and subtext. The ideal environment for any kids working to memorize social cues (‘cues’ is a theatre word) in a safe, scaffolded context where they

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A traditional Balinese Barong mask

Performance for Discovery & Transformation: Bali Intro

As you probably know, I believe profoundly in the ability of performance to spark and facilitate discovery and transformation. As artist and teachers, sometimes our own arts practices need a boost of Discovery & Transformation as well! I recently came across a Bali module I had created for schools, and looked at the introductory concepts with my “right now” eyes. Although I continue to use large paper and topical imagery in my regular practice, I had forgotten the importance of ‘the swirling river of spirit’ and the idea of everyone as participant, even those we do not see, even those beings

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Girls from a secret school in Kabul in 2002

Clowns on the Silk Road, an introduction

My Master’s Thesis was called “The Search for Indigenous Clown Forms in Afghanistan” (of course it was), stimulated in part by participation in a humanitarian mission to Afghanistan in February of 2002 with the the Italian military, an Italian film crew, and approximately two dozen clowns, mostly Italian. My passion for Silk Roads clowns continues unabated, and lately, people have been asking me more about them. Thus, this blog entry! This is an excerpt (sadly made slightly ‘rumpled’ in tone in my attempt to cut words) from a paper I presented at a Silk Roads Conference in Australia. It also

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Holly with her son Chris riding camels in Egypt

Shout-Out to Students Going into the Arts

There’s a lot I love about being an artist. So much that I can’t get it all in one place, but I do want to put a few things out there about what being an artist means to me—and how that can apply to you. Practical Advice Being an Artist is in many many ways like every other business: if you only sell one product, your business will fail. If you are a shoe saleswoman and all you sell is aqua-marine stiletto slippers, your business will fail. If you are an artist and all you sell is performing other people’s

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a mask for the 'rough cut wooden marionettes' in Don Quixote

Tips for Mask Making—Part One of Three

I am often asked to teach classes, mentor, or give advice regarding mask-making practices. Towards this end, I am dedicating this first blog to making masks with Papier Mache, the second Mask blog post to making masks with Manila Folders, and the third Mask blog post to making masks with Aquaplast. Papier Mache: What is it? In a nutshell, Papier mache is a process in which strips of newspaper (usually) are dipped in a mixture of either wallpaper paste and water or glue and water, then laid over a sculpted mold. What are the pros and cons of using it?

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