Takoma Theatre Conservancy - Takoma Theatre Conservancy

Through the Conservancy's sponsorship, the Smithsonian Discovery Theater returned to Shepherd ES, Takoma EC and West EC to present an inspiring musical play about three young heroes of the civil rights struggle: Ernest Green of the Little Rock Nine, the first black student to graduate from an integrated high school; Claudette Colvin, who refused to give up her bus seat before Rosa Parks; and Ruby Bridges, who won equal rights before she could read. Students find inspiration in the stories of the courage and hope of our youngest citizen. The show is infused with the sounds of songs of the civil rights movement. In partnership with Class Acts Arts. [Jan/Feb 2012]

At the first performance event in the newly renovated school, the Lesole's Dance Project introduced three South African cultures to Takoma EC's students through their high energy dances: the traditional Indlamu dance from Zulu villages; the Gumboot, a percussive kind of "instant messaging" dance slapped out on gold miners' rubber boots, and the Pantsula, an upbeat urban dance like American hip-hop but with a cultural twist.  After each presentation, native South African Lesole Maine (pronounced Mah-ee-nay), the dance company's founder, explained the origins and context of the exciting dances and gave the young audience of pre-school through 2nd grade students an opportunity to participate and try the dance steps.

The Indlamu of Zulu villages, is known as “the warrior dance”. Originally it was to train and celebrate the victories of Shaka’s Zulu warriors. Now it is performed to celebrate childbirth and weddings and is danced by both men and women.  Gumboots dancing originated in the gold mines of South Africa during the oppressive Apartheid years. Black laborers worked in total darkness for three months at a time in appalling conditions.  They were chained to their stations and were forbidden to talk to each other. They stood up to their knees in infected water causing skin diseases; resulting in lost time from work. Those in charge of the mine work discovered that it was too expensive to drain the mines, so they made the workers wear Gumboots. The miners used the gumboots as a method of communication by slapping the boots, stomping their feet and rattling their ankle chains. Later, this became a form of recreation for men during long months away from their families. The Pantsula, a street dance that involves a lot of fast footwork, attitude, and the ability to wiggle and jerk the body into different unusual rhythms, has its origins in the 1960's. Migrant laborers were taking their families from their homeland to the fast life of Johannesburg townships, children were exposed to city life, different cultures, new ways of living, and new music. They quickly adapted their way of living and dance by mimicking the fast life in the townships. This dance is usually done with colorful attire: Converse "All Star" sneakers, dickies pants and hats "Sporty.” Pantsula became popular in the 80’s among the youth of the townships. Youth clubs would have competitions among themselves and choose the best group/dancer to represent them.  Sponsored in partnership with Class Acts Arts. [Jan 2012]

[Dec 2011] The third school year of Takoma Theatre Conservancy's sponsorship of in-school productions began with a student favorite, Dovie Thomason, Native American storyteller, at the Latin American Montessori Bilingual (LAMB) Public Charter School. Told with elegance, wit and passion, her stories inspire delight in the spoken word and teach respect for values passed on through generations.  When Dovie tells stories from her own life and from her people's experience, the result is a contemporary vision of the rich cultures of the First Nations of North America. Through diverse voices and gestures she conjures up the wisdom of Native Americans from the time before rocks were hard. In partnership with Class Acts Arts. (more photos ...)

[June, 2011] The Takoma Theatre Conservancy and Northgate Kiwanis Club partnered  to support youth productions of the play, Tambourine Moon by Joy Jones, at Congress Heights Capital City Public Charter School (performance at the new theatre at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital), and Shaed Elementary School.  Ms. Jones' musical comedy, A Musical Level of Pain, was recently produced at the DC Black Theater Festival under the direction of Giselle LeBleu Gant.

[May, 2011] Dovie Thomason shared the wise, boisterous teaching tales of her Lakota and Plains Apache relatives with 4th grade students at Whittier EC as part of their studies of Native American culture.  Her stories come alive in listeners' imaginations as she shares her culture with understanding, sly humor and astonishing vocal transformations. In partnership with Class Acts Arts.

[May 2011] Pre-K through 3rd grade students at Takoma EC learned about the 4 Rrrrr's from the singing and dancing of the Junkyard Pirates puppets:
Recycle - To process used or waste material so that it can be used again;
Reduce the Use - To use less electricity, less paper products;
Repair - To restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken;
Reuse - To use again, especially after salvaging or special treatment

The puppets, made from recycled materials, sail the urban seas on the lookout for trash to feed the dreaded, smelly monster Landfill.  Landfill allows them to live on his land as long as they keep bringing him trash so he can grow larger and larger. The pirates sail into a recycling center, but the owner, Nellie, catches them and convinces them to work against Landfill. Nellie enlists the audience's help and through song and story learn about the 4 Rrrrr's. Teachers incorporated the lessons into the students' 4th quarter studies around the "Water" curriculum theme. In partnership with Class Acts Arts.

[May, 2011] In his "Water Wonders" show, Billy B. made a big splash as he took Takoma EC 4th-8th grade students through song and dance on a musical swim into lakes, rivers, streams, swamps, bays and oceans. Watersheds, estuaries, erosion, nutrient loading and runoff are among the concepts presented as he reveals the ways of the Chesapeake bay. Through songs such as "Green Slime," "That's Runoff, Man!" and "Crab Jubilee", students learn about the environmental problems of too much algae, runoff, oxygen loss in the water, estuary, brackish water, nutrients, decomposers, and plankton.

[April, 2011] Billy B.'s musical performance "Recycle Mania" burst with energetic songs and dances about swamps, estuaries, biodiversity, rainforests, geology and natural wonders about the world's "greatest recycling center" -- the Earth.  Whittier's 7th & 8th grade students learned the many ways in which the earth's ecosystem recycles air, water and soil. Billy picks volunteers to dance with him as he sings "These Trees." Students act out the natural air, soil, and water recycling activities of every plant and explore the three reasons for recycling. "We recycle to save space, energy, and nature." (more photos ...)

[Mar 24-25, 2011] Under a DC NIF grant, the Takoma Theatre Conservancy sponsored two in-school performances of the opera "Let Freedom Sing: The Story of Marian Anderson".  The 1-hour opera specifically written for young DC audiences, engrossed Takoma's 5th - 8th grade students, and Shepherd's 3rd-5th graders. The composer Bruce Adolphe and librettist Carolivia Herron (a DC Ward 4 resident) interconnected African American and classical musical forms, and incorporated scenes and characters of Washington, DC. Dr. Herron introduced the performance, relating that characters Jo and Jack were based on her mother and uncle who traveled from NE DC to hear Marian Anderson at the 1939 concert at the Lincoln Memorial. Sponsored by the Takoma Theatre Conservancy in cooperation with the Washington National Opera, Washington Performing Arts Society and The Learning Maestros. (more photos . . .)

[March, 2011] Shakespeare lives! at Takoma EC. With dynamic live performances and workshops, Educational Theatre Company’s (ETC) professional actors shared their love of theatre and Shakespeare with Takoma's students in grades 5-8. Following a lively and entertaining performance of scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream, ETC actors conducted individual workshops with each class.  Students learned to explore the text’s vocal, physical, mental and emotional challenges in support of basic skills.  Workshops included physical and vocal characterization, analysis of script and improvisation, and stage combat. Sponsored by Takoma Theatre Conservancy in partnership with Class Acts Arts. [more photos . . .]

[February, 2011] Master storyteller Baba Jamal Koram brings storytelling alive with the history, humor, music and lore of African and African-American cultures. Blending contemporary and traditional storytelling techniques with drumming, call and response, wit and wisdom, his stories encourage youth to make intelligent choices and to improve their character. In partnership with Class Acts Arts. [Shepherd ES, K-2nd grades]

[February, 2011] This year's production of Lions of Industry, Mothers of Invention by the Smithsonian Discovery Theatre engaged students at Whittier EC to look at the lives and work of amazing African American entrepreneurs and inventors who overcame immense odds to succeed.  For Whittier, which is a DC Catalyst school emphasizing science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), the characters, including beauty innovator Madam C.J. Walker, agricultural chemist and painter George Washington Carver, and academic giant Booker T. Washington, founder of the Tuskegee Institute, were particularly relevant. Also depicted are the "Father of Chicago", Haitian American Jean Baptiste Point du Sable and his Native American wife, Kittahawa, potato chip inventor George Crum, and John Murphy, a freed slave who started the newspaper The Afro-American, one of the most influential publications of the early twentieth century. In partnership with Class Acts Arts. (more photos ...)

[January, 2011] The singing, dancing Junkyard Pirates puppets, made from recycled materials, sail the urban seas on the lookout for trash to feed the dreaded, smelly monster Landfill.  Landfill allows them to live on his land as long as they keep bringing him trash so he can grow larger and larger. The priates sail into a recycling center, but the owner, Nellie, catches them and convinces them to work against Landfill. Nellie enlists the audience's help through song and story, and learning about the 4 Rrrrr's: Recycle - To process used or waste material so that it can be used again; Reduce the Use - To use less electricity, less paper products; Repair - To restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken; Reuse - To use again, especially after salvaging or special treatment. In partnership with Class Acts Arts. [Whittier EC, pre-K - 3rd grade; West EC, pre-K - 3rd grade] (more photos . . .)

[December, 2010] The wise, boisterous teaching tales of her Lakota and Plains Apache relatives come alive in listeners' imaginations as Dovie Thomason shares her culture with understanding, sly humor and astonishing vocal transformations. Through diverse voices and gestures she conjures up the wisdom of Native Americans from the time before rocks were hard. In partnership with Class Acts Arts. [Shepherd ES 3rd-5th grades]
(more photos . . .)

[September, 2010] To kick-off the school year and celebrate Hispanic Heritage month, four DC schools (Takoma EC, Whittier EC, West EC and Shepherd ES) once again explored the triumphs of today's multi-cultural kids through these educational and entertaining performances by the Smithsonian Discovery Theater. Using drama, comedy, dance and music, the actors explored How many cultures can we individually be? Why not all of them at once! Why do survey forms ask us to pick one racial/ethnic label?. Memories of Celia Cruz in mama's kitchen, tales from a crowded Metro, and student participation make for lots of laughs and surprises. Written in collaboration with the Young Playwrights' Theater, the performances were arranged and sponsored by the Conservancy in partnership with Class Acts Arts of Silver Spring, MD.

[May, 2010] Through its high energy performance and presentation, Urban Artistry introduced West EC students and parents at the annual Spring Fling to today's urban dance forms -- salsa, hip-hop, popping,locking, lacking, free-styling -- and their historical and african and latin cultural origins. Founded and directed by Junious "House" Brickhouse, Urban Artistry consists of dancers, musicians, and historians who are also, economists, audio/visual technicians, anthropologists, logisticians, writers, graphic designers, communications experts, IT and entertainment specialists who have all matured through their education in urban arts culture. (more photos . . .)

[March, 2010] The jungles of Brazil and Africa come to life as Antonio Rocha singlehandedly evokes the sights and sounds of the rainforest and its wildly entertaining inhabitants. Antonio draws from his repertoire of animal tales with an ecological theme and a myriad of fantastic sound effects that entertain and educate.

[February, 2010] Lions of Industry, Mothers of Invention, looks at the lives and work of amazing African American entrepreneurs and inventors who overcame immense odds to succeed. The characters include beauty innovator Madam C.J. Walker, agricultural chemist and painter George Washington Carver, and academic giant Booker T. Washington, founder of the Tuskegee Institute. Also depicted are the "Father of Chicago", Haitian American Jean Baptiste Point du Sable and his Native American wife, Kittahawa, potato chip inventor George Crum, and John Murphy, a freed slave who started the newspaper The Afro-American, one of the most influential publications of the early twentieth century.
(more photos . . .)

[January, 2010] Going the Distance is a story of heroics and unstoppable spirit, an entertaining and educational portrayal of African American heroes Jesse Owens and Wilma Rudolph. Through song, dance and narrative, the two great athletes race to tell their stories of rising from childhood illness and infirmity, poverty, and prejudice to the greatest height in athletics: the Olympic Gold Medal! Jesse Owens, the son of a sharecropper and grandson of a slave, became the first American track & field athlete to win four gold medals in a single Olympiad. Jesse entered the 1936 Olympics, which were held in Nazi Germany amidst the belief by Hitler that the Games would support his belief that the German "Aryan" people were the dominant race. Jesse proved otherwise. Wilma Rudolph, the 20th child of a family of 22, was born with polio that left her crippled and unable to attend school. Through exercise and strong determination, she begin to walk more normally at age 12, and then in high school and college set new national track records. Her ultimate accomplishment came in 1960 at the Olympic Games in Rome where she won three gold medals for the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay. (more photos . . .)

[October, 2009] How many cultures can we individually be? Why not all of them at once! The Conservancy arranged and sponsored performances of this entertaining and educational program by the Smithsonian Discovery Theater in October at two DC Public Schools (Takoma Educational Center and Shepherd ES). Through drama, comedy, dance, music, and student participation, the actors engagingly relate memories of Celia Cruz in her mama’s kitchen, slavery in the America's, and tales from a crowded Metro. Written in collaboration with the Young Playwrights’ Theater, the show explores the triumphs of today’s multi-cultural kids. (more photos . . .)