Schools with Grades 5-8 can apply for services and materials valued at $12K
From the 2019 JumpStart Theatre Showcase at the Taft Theatre. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.
Applications are now available to participate in the middle school initiative, JumpStart Theatre, managed by The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati.
All Cincinnati tri-state area middle schools and schools with grades 5-8 may apply to participate in JumpStart Theatre. Applications can be completed and submitted online beginning January 6, through February 15, 2020. Selected schools will be announced in the spring and will begin implementing the program in their school in the fall of 2020.
Participant schools are chosen through the online application which is now available at: https://thechildrenstheatre.com/2019/12/jumpstart-theatre-program/
Training & Ongoing Mentoring:
Each selected school will receive services and materials valued at $12,000 in the form of training, mentoring, and production support for a show for their community. Students will be involved in every aspect of the production, and TCT will also host an annual JumpStart Theatre showcase, bringing all the participants together to share their work.
Three teachers from each participating school are taught the techniques and skills to develop and manage a musical theatre program (everything from casting, to rehearsal schedules, to staging/choreography and technical requirements, to cultivating parent/community engagement, to achieving economic sustainability) through a series of three, full-day professional development “boot camps” each year of the three-year program, plus an ongoing mentoring/coaching relationship with an experienced theatre teaching artist.
Timeline:
- January 6 through February 15, 2020 (11:59 PM) – Applications accepted
- February – March 2020 – Interviews for schools who have applied and Site Visits for Finalists
- April 2020 – Selected schools notified & orientation for selected schools
- May 2020 – Planning for 2020-2021 school year (submit show selections, boot camp dates determined, contracts signed)
- Fall 2020 – Program begins at selected sites
About JumpStart Theatre:
JumpStart Theatre is a collaboration among the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), and New York City-based companies, Music Theatre International (MTI) and iTheatrics. The program trains educators to develop sustainable arts programs at underserved middle schools that do not currently offer theatre in the curriculum or after school.
“Studies have shown that theatre education helps our young people become better students and citizens. The experience of being in a musical teaches life skills like accountability, respect, teamwork, discipline, risk-taking, and creativity,” said Julie Theobald Executive Director of EdTA.
Kim Kern, Managing Director and CEO of The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati said, “JumpStart Theatre is a natural extension of The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati’s goal to fill the gap left by the reduction of arts education in schools, and to provide equitable access to the arts for all children. This program gives schools the tools they need to build a sustainable musical theatre program, while providing students with exposure to the arts and building life skills such as increased self-esteem and social skills.”
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La Comedia Dinner Theatre in Springboro, Ohio will be holding auditions for their upcoming production of FOOTLOOSE on Saturday February 1, 2020 at 10:00 A.M., at 765 W. Central Ave., Springboro, Ohio.
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