1 post tagged “ottawa”
I was on a field trip this past
Friday to Ottawa with all the people in my program. Our program is
called, Artist in the Community Education, so we get to do lots of cool
arts-related things that the rest of B.Ed don't get to do (it's pretty
awesome!) 25 of us got on a bus early Friday morning to head to Ottawa
for a day of arts and education. We started at the National Arts Centre
with a backstage tour. The wings off the biggest stage (Southam Hall)
in the NAC are bigger than most stages I've played on. It was AWESOME.
We then had a panel discussion with the NAC's English Theatre, Music,
and Dance Education Outreach coordinators, and the Education outreach
coordinators from the Museum of Civilizations and the National (Art)
Gallery. These people have SUCH cool
jobs; I was extremely inspired by this panel of speakers. If I was
bilingual, I would definitely consider finding a job in Ottawa that
involved Education Outreach (especailly if it was for English Theatre
at the NAC; they're hoping to expand that area! I need conversational
French lessons...)
After our panel discussion we ate lunch. All the drama students got to eat lunch with Canadian playwright, John Mighton. We also got to see opening night of his show later that evening in Theatre Hall at the NAC. John is a pretty interesting guy. He's a mathematician, which makes his plays rather interesting. He is also extremely passionate about teaching and has created a program called, JUMP that he's trying to get more teachers to start using. It is a very math-centered program, but it can be applied to other disciplines as well (apparently... John really only focused on the math aspects). It's sounds like an innovative approach to teaching; I'm intrigued enough to want to find out more so I can get a less biased opinion on it.
After some time learning about how to help students explore art at the National Gallery (and some time to ourselves to wonder and look at art) we ate and headed back to the NAC to see John Mighton's play, The Little Years. This was an interesting play, although I enjoyed the overall aesthtic of the piece more than the script. After some discussion with others, we decided that each scene is wonderful in and of its own, but the overall play doesn't have enough focus or purpose. It was difficult to watch the main character move nowhere during most of the play. The actors, however, were good. The lead, Tanja Jacobs, was phenominal. The show also starred Julie Stewart (of Cold Squad fame, if you ever watched that tv show; it's off the air now). In a "small world" kind of way, I also found out that I know Julie Stewart's sister because she does publicity for the Thousand Islands Playhouse, which is the theatre I worked in this past spring and summer. Julie also acted at the Playhouse back in the day (I saw her in an archival photo this summer in the lobby at the Playhouse).
At any rate, my day was wonderful! I love the arts! I might go back to Ottawa in February or March for my "alternative" practicum (aka. a practicum NOT in a school) with the English Theatre Educational Outreach division at the NAC. Woo hoo! Although, I'm also looking into some theatre companies in Toronto as well (specifically theatres that work with puppets... man, my program is cool!) If you get the chance, head to Ottawa for some really great art opportunities! Especailly if you can take kids; there are SO many awesome programs out there for students of all ages!
After our panel discussion we ate lunch. All the drama students got to eat lunch with Canadian playwright, John Mighton. We also got to see opening night of his show later that evening in Theatre Hall at the NAC. John is a pretty interesting guy. He's a mathematician, which makes his plays rather interesting. He is also extremely passionate about teaching and has created a program called, JUMP that he's trying to get more teachers to start using. It is a very math-centered program, but it can be applied to other disciplines as well (apparently... John really only focused on the math aspects). It's sounds like an innovative approach to teaching; I'm intrigued enough to want to find out more so I can get a less biased opinion on it.
After some time learning about how to help students explore art at the National Gallery (and some time to ourselves to wonder and look at art) we ate and headed back to the NAC to see John Mighton's play, The Little Years. This was an interesting play, although I enjoyed the overall aesthtic of the piece more than the script. After some discussion with others, we decided that each scene is wonderful in and of its own, but the overall play doesn't have enough focus or purpose. It was difficult to watch the main character move nowhere during most of the play. The actors, however, were good. The lead, Tanja Jacobs, was phenominal. The show also starred Julie Stewart (of Cold Squad fame, if you ever watched that tv show; it's off the air now). In a "small world" kind of way, I also found out that I know Julie Stewart's sister because she does publicity for the Thousand Islands Playhouse, which is the theatre I worked in this past spring and summer. Julie also acted at the Playhouse back in the day (I saw her in an archival photo this summer in the lobby at the Playhouse).
At any rate, my day was wonderful! I love the arts! I might go back to Ottawa in February or March for my "alternative" practicum (aka. a practicum NOT in a school) with the English Theatre Educational Outreach division at the NAC. Woo hoo! Although, I'm also looking into some theatre companies in Toronto as well (specifically theatres that work with puppets... man, my program is cool!) If you get the chance, head to Ottawa for some really great art opportunities! Especailly if you can take kids; there are SO many awesome programs out there for students of all ages!
