The First 100 Stories Campaign: A Testimonial from Edie Falco!

August 30, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Frances McGarry, Edie Falco and Eve Terry
“Fran McGarry and Eve Terry, perhaps unbeknownst to them, played a huge part in my path to my present career. Though I was just a schoolkid, they treated me like an artist; made me believe I had something unique to offer. They helped grow my confidence which I believe can take you anywhere you want to go. I am so grateful.”

– Edie Falco
July 11, 2011
Let’s hear it from you: Teachers! Students! Graduates! Parents! Artists! 
Click here to submit your testimonial.
Filed Under: Educational Theater, Testimonials, The First 100 Stories Tagged With: , ,

First Online With Fran

August 10, 2011 by Leave a Comment

The Arts continue to be cut from school curriculums across the nation. Despite arts advocacy groups’ efforts to prevent the decline of arts inclusion, the budgetary solution remains to be that the arts are perceived as extra-curricular and disposable. My blog First on Line with Fran will offer opportunities for you to join me in discussions on how ordinary people are doing extraordinary things in The Arts to make our world a richer, deeper, better place to live.

For over 30 years I have witnessed how The Arts have impacted the lives of so many people, young and old. Utilizing testimonials, videos, and interviews First on Line with Fran will serve to be the sounding board to let the world know that, “We’re angry as hell and we’re not gonna take it any more!” Instead of taking polite nibbles to offset this spiraling trend, let’s bite back!

Here’s my strategy:

Step One: Let’s Get Loud: Raise AWARENESS

We know there’s a drama, art, music, dance, classroom teacher who changed your life. Every educator knows that within EACH and EVERY child lies an artistic soul waiting to be sparked; it makes no difference where they’re from or what their economic status.

The Arts Rejuvenate. The Arts Restore. The Arts are our supernatural gift.

It is the force that unites us as a single, breathing, living entity that connects every human being to be all that is good and pure.

Send me your testimonial: How your third grade teacher taught you to write your first play, finger paint your fears away on an oily white sheet of paper, dance to the beat of your own drum, strum, blow, sing the lyrics that express your point of view. Move an audience so deeply that they all get goose bumps! (Wagner, Search For Signs of Intelligent Life). Click here to submit a testimonial.

Step Two: Spread the Word: NETWORK

Arrange an interview with Fran: I am scheduling appointments with people who are getting the job done. I am interested in the work you are doing and would like to feature you and/or your organization on First on Line with Fran. Tell that teacher, arts organization, teaching artist who made a difference and have them talk about their efforts to keep the arts alive and relevant. We can talk about goals and objectives and the obstacles you confront either as an individual and/or as an organization. I am particularly interested in your personal commentary and why you have chosen to pursue this cause.  Click here to arrange an interview.

Step Three: Consequences: DESIRED OUTCOMES

You know what I want what I really really want…

•Keep The Arts as a staple of a child’s education because…

•Keep The Arts as a core mission of government as compared to road repair because…

•Keep the arts as a cultural investment because the National Endowment for the Arts conducted a federally funded research that showed $278 billion in economic activity was spun off by the arts in 2009.

If you would like to join me, then be sure to contact me with your ideas. You never know…small packages can surprise you!

Filed Under: First Online with Fran, Resources, YouTube Video

Literacy Builders 2011 Summer Workshop

August 9, 2011 by Leave a Comment

August 11, 2011
Literacy Builders Start September Strong Summer Workshop Series
August 1 – 4, 2011
Hampton Inn
Commack, New York

The professional development summer institute explored approaches, teaching structures, and provided field tested mini lessons to optimize literacy growth and development. Conference participants included K-8 classroom teachers, reading specialists, special educators, administrators, and graduate students.

On the last day of the institute, I presented a 90-minute hands-on workshop Write A Play! The Bridge to Stronger, Better Writing. The workshop challenged participants to Imagine possibilities, Integrate applications into their curriculum, and Implement what they’ve learned to encourage sustainability. Utilizing an ice-breaker exercise What’s In A Name? from Young Playwrights Inc.’s Write A Play! Curriculum Guide, participants created a character: five-year-old Danielle Determined. She loved to wear a magenta pink boa, her mother’s black patent leather heels, and a matching handbag with a lollipop inside. She wants to be a movie star and is quite adamant about fulfilling this aspiration. A deconstruction of the exercise revealed how names can be evocative and that the choices a writer makes can tell us something about a character. We also explored practical applications of how the exercise would meet writing and reading literacy standards.

Literacy Builders Executive Director Kim Yaris felt the workshop was “outstanding . . . and the perfect note on which to end [the institute].” She implemented her new knowledge with her sons, ages ten and eight, and her eight-year-old nephew over the weekend. “We had a blast,” she said, “I think you’ve helped launch a new family tradition.” Truly Inspirational!

Filed Under: Resources Tagged With:

Dr. Nancy Swortzell

August 3, 2011 by Leave a Comment
It is with great sadness to learn that Dr. Nancy Swortzell, mentor and co-founder of the NYU Program in Educational Theatre passed away July 31, 2011. She had a tremendous influence on me and many others who had the benefit of her tutelage. I was fortunate to have been cast in a production directed by her, And Then They Came for Me at the Provincetown Playhouse. I particularly loved listening to her personal anecdotes during rehearsal. She was saucy, sweet, volatile and vibrant. She was and will remain to be an inspiration to all! She will be sorely missed.
And Then They Came for Me at the Provincetown Playhouse
Filed Under: Educational Theater Tagged With: ,