Youth Educational Programs
Boxtales educational programs for youth are multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary, curriculum and message oriented, and encourage audience participation.
Photo by Paul Gold
Multicultural - BOXTALES aims to expose children and adults to the rich artistic folklore and myths of the world. The audience will become aware of both the similarities and unique qualities of varying cultures. BOXTALES hopes this will create an atmosphere of respect and tolerance of people from different cultures as well as a sense of pride in those who hear stories from their own heritage.
Multi-Disciplinary - BOXTALES offers professional theatre productions involving several artistic disciplines. We combine the ancient art of storytelling with elements of traditional theatre and commedia del arte, blending in a rich musical score played live on authentic ethnic instruments. Beautifully designed masks, costumes, and props add a strong visual aspect.
Curriculum & Message Oriented Shows - BOXTALES has made a concerted effort to create shows that relate to the curriculum being used in the schools. Outreach materials to explore both parallel myths as well as modern day events that relate to the stories in the shows are available to teachers. The history of myths are explored, a bibliography of the stories used and other myths from around the world are suggested, fun exercises are given to the lower grades, and helpful techniques in storytelling are provided.
Audience Interactive - BOXTALES involves their audience in each of their shows. Often audience members are pulled on stage or asked to call and respond during a tale. BOXTALES believes that the beauty of storytelling is that it is responsive to the audience. The audience is not only involved in the show, but they are also asked to interact with the artists afterward. BOXTALES follows each performance with a question and answer period so that the audience does not feel separated from the artist, that their curiosity in the arts can be fed, and that the arts are something they, too, can do.
Assemblies
For booking information and a list of available assemblies, go to Assemblies.
By presenting folkloric and mythological material using a highly interactive, visual, aural theatrical style, we supply teachers with a unique and highly effective method of instructional delivery. The State of California recommends that teachers find creative ways to present literary material and we help them do that. All of BOXTALES' elementary school productions include professionally-researched teacher guides to help them make use of our performance in reaching their curriculum goals.
For example, the teacher guide for our 45 minute production The Odyssey includes background information on Homer, historical information about the period during which The Odyssey takes place, pre-performance discussion topics (such as the role of women or what it means to be a hero), a synopsis of the play to be performed, a character list, and follow-up discussion and activity ideas (such as talking about the effects of war or creating a storytelling festival of the students’ own creations).
When teachers use these guides (and most of them do), they help students have a more profound educational experience than they would have if they simply saw the play with no discussion before or after. All our productions address the Visual and Performing Arts Framework for California Public Schools. The five strands of these standards are
- Artistic Perception
- Creative Expression
- Historical and Cultural Context
- Aesthetic Valuing
- Connections, Relations, and Applications.
The program will also address content standards in English Language Arts:
- Word Analysis
- Fluency
- Systematic Vocabulary Development
- Reading Comprehension
Workshops
BOXTALES offers a wide variety of workshops in the disciplines of theatre, storytelling, music, mask, and movement. Contact us regarding designing a workshop to fit your needs
BOXTALES In-School Theatre Residency
For years BOXTALES has been educating teachers and teaching theatre skills to students, all over the western states, and in Santa Barbara with the BOXTALES Summer Theatre Camp. BOXTALES is now offering a new residency program for Santa Barbara schools with training in the BOXTALES method. This residency will stimulate minds, encourage teamwork, build character, develop self-esteem, unlock imagination, develop sensitivity to others, and broaden their awareness of the world as well as give them the tools to create interesting theatre and tell a clear story! This residency is the only professional theatre artist training in Santa Barbara.
The residency includes a performance by the company and in-school workshops. The residencies can range from 1 – 4 days or longer to suit your schools educational needs.
The following video was made for Boxtales by the students of McKinley Elementary School after a 12 week residency in 2010.
Since 1994 BOXTALES Theatre Company has distinguished itself and developed a unique style of theatre combining traditional storytelling with gestural movement, mask work, acrobatics, puppetry, mime, dance, and elements of radical sports. Adding to this the style relies heavily on multicultural theatrical forms such as Kabuki, European Avant-Garde, Noh, Comedia Del Arte, Butoh, and Balinese Shadow Theatre.
BOXTALES was recently nominated “Best Youth Program in America” by Young Audiences of America, (the largest youth organization in the country putting arts in the schools.
Please email Michael Andrews for pricing and scheduling, or call 805-565-9135.
summer Theatre camp
A three-week journey in the BOXTALES method, including training in: acting, storytelling, acro-yoga, mime, music, characterization and collaboration. This year’s campers will create an original stage production of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen.
BOXTALES offers the only professional theatre training for youth in Santa Barbara. This camp will stimulate minds, encourage team work, build character, and develop self esteem.
See Boxtales Summer Theatre Camp
After School
BOXTALES Theatre Company is currently repeating a program called The Ages. The Ages is an intergenerational program in which Santa Barbara school students interview local elders about their lives, in an after-school format. Read more about the 2008 The Ages...
