A week long artist in residency program at Ponoka Elementary School (PES) will conclude with a student-built play set for this Friday.
Students are in the middle of a busy week with the Trickster Theatre group out of Calgary, which gets students involved in the many aspects of producing a play. The production company held a special assembly Sept. 19 to get kids and teachers excited for what is to come.
Maddy Knight, one of the performing artists with the group, said the program aims to teach kids all about theatre and how to put on a well-produced play.
“By Friday we’ll have a whole bunch of shows to perform for the school and our parents,” she explained.
The week long event culminates with a special series of plays for parents in the afternoon and will showcase the talents of students.
“It’s pretty immersive,” said Knight of the program. “We pretty much throw them into the deep end.”
“Everyone sort of gets a chance to be the creator.”
Students will help write, act, create lighting and stage props and even direct their plays. “Essentially it feels like a pretty big production.”
Each and every performance is original and Knight says they take suggestions from the young thespians to help create a quick three-minute play for their group. For rural communities that don’t have an easily accessible performing arts program, Knight suggests these residency programs are a great way to get involved.
“This is a really nice way for kids, that maybe have never had the chance to engage in theatre arts, to really get thrown into it,” explained Knight.
She suggests the program opens up many doors for young actors and can even create a joy of theatre because of it.
“It is a really interesting way to engage kids in an art form that they may not normally have tried before,” she concluded.
Trickster Theatre was formed in 1980 and has a strong history of physical theatre. For details on the performance times contact PES.