Benched Players

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Theater Improvisation add to wish list

An enriching theater residency adaptable to class or curriculum needs. The Benched Players use elements of theater and improvisation to encourage critical thinking, empathy, situational analysis, emotional awareness and control, media literacy and more. In a series of participatory classroom workshops, students explore their feelings about the issues they face everyday.

Topics vary by age and grade level, and may include:
Grades K-3: Self-awareness and awareness of others.
Grades 4-6: Peer pressure, the influence of media.
Grades 7-12: Peer pressure, drug and alcohol abuse, self-expression and confidence, as well as responsibility.

The program can be presented as two back to back workshops (90 minutes) or a residency consisting of five to nine 45-minute classroom workshop sessions. Contact office for details.

Grade Level:
K-12
Workshop cost (back to back):
$184.00
Audience Limit:
25
Curriculum Correlations:
Health Home Ec, Language Arts, The Arts
Tags:
workshop , residency , media , character education

Benched Players

Melissa Kate Miller is a songwriter, stage and voice actress, writer and poet. She is also the program director of the Benched Players. As the US Managing Director for Artfully AWARE, and leader of the cabaret blues act, The Melissa Kate Project, she draws from a varied background for her students.

The Benched Players seek to lift students from the sidelines ("off the bench" ), and through theater games and improvisation, awaken and engage their critical thinking and creative minds. Formed in 2006, The Benched Players has morphed from a team of actors presenting a show to a one-on-one, hands-on workshop where students learn and perform theatrical improvisation techniques, using the challenges they confront daily as a basis for their work. The program was designed particularly with special needs and at-risk students in mind.

Miller holds a BFA in Musical Theater from SUNY Fredonia. She has worked with many arts-in-education programs including Community Action Organization, Arts in Education of WNY; she' s served stints as a teacher and choreographer at many area schools; and taught workshops at the Lancaster Opera House for teens and kids.