|
Melissa Bernstein is the Artistic Director of Newton Theatre Company and the director of Newton Theatre Kids (NTK). She was the Founder and Executive Director of the Newton Youth Players, housed in the Newton Cultural Center at City Hall, for over ten years. Over the program's history, she has directed over 50 productions involving close to one thousand youth actors. Melissa holds a Ph.D. in Theatre from the University of Colorado at Boulder, an MFA in Playwriting/ Theatre Education from Emerson College, and a BA in Theatre from SUNY-Binghamton.
As Newton Theatre Company works to expand its educational offerings, Melissa thought it was time to share the background of Newton Theatre Kids and the philosophy behind it. Read excerpts of a Q&A with Melissa below. |
|
Abby: What originally made you want to work with children?
Melissa: They’re just so funny and amazing and they can do anything onstage. It’s really incredible, a group of kids can put together a show. By the end they’re so proud of themselves and you’re so proud of them because they really own the show. It’s a joy to work with them.
Abby: Could you outline the trajectory of your work in arts education?
Melissa: In college, I was part of a small children’s theater troupe-- we put on fairy tales for kids and would travel around Binghamton to libraries and schools. Then when I went to get my graduate degree in theatre education from Emerson, I started running the kindergarten through third grade theater program at the Chestnut Hill School summer camp. That was where I started doing musicals with kids. I did that for a few summers, and then went away to get my PhD. When I came back I missed it so much, so after my kids got a bit older I went to city hall and suggested to Linda Plaut that we try a production of Annie with elementary school kids. She said, “let’s do it.” Quickly that became Newton Youth Players, and we grew from one show a season to four different casts doing the same musical. I spent 12 years working for the city, and then just this year we decided that it was a good time to leave the city’s program and start something new at Newton Theatre Company. Of course, we maintain the Newton Youth Players philosophy of finding the joy of theater with elementary school kids. Right now, we’re up to three casts in the fall, and we will be doing four casts in the winter.
Abby: Why do you think arts education is important?
Melissa: First of all, the arts tell us so much about what it means to be human. Art poses so many questions-- a lot more questions than answers-- so there’s so much to explore. And in terms of education, there are so many kids who are passionate about so many different things, and it’s not always academics or athletics. Oftentimes, you see so much passion in a kid for something aesthetic, and it’s just so great to have an outlet for your passion, even at a young age. And then there are the kids who just like doing it casually-- even if theater is just one of the many things they like doing, our program makes it easy to participate without having to sacrifice other interests.
Abby: What impact have you seen your programs have on children?
Melissa: So there’s the typical theater kid-- we’ll have a kid come in in second grade, do every single show for five years, and then go on to be excited about it in middle school and high school. I even get emails from moms telling me about the shows their kids are in now, years later. For me, it’s exciting to see the passion they had as an eight year old continue to blossom.
And then there are also kids that come through our program who don’t pursue theater. I was recently at Rancatore's in Newtonville, and it turned out that the girl giving me ice cream-- who was a sophomore in college studying sociology-- had been in Newton Youth Players. And all these years later, she still remembered the program: she was bringing up all these great memories she had of all the children she worked with. She could name every show she was in and what part she had. It made me so happy to know that we’re a part of her after-school memories-- that we really are a community.
Abby: What makes Newton Theatre Kids (NTK) unique?
Melissa: We have a very unique philosophy, and it starts right when the kids get in the room. We always begin in a circle, which I think is the perfect metaphor: everyone’s voice is important. I make sure I can see everyone’s face and that everyone can see each other, because this circle is all about creating a beautiful ensemble community.
It’s also very unique because we get to see these younger kids-- kindergarteners and up-- really grow and mature and handle things. I think they feel very grown up doing it with the older kids, and the older kids-- the fourth and fifth graders-- are so incredibly helpful to the younger kids, so it’s this great multi-age community.
The idea of the “no-stress show” is also a big part of it. We keep expectations reasonable so the kids are able to do a great little show and feel proud of themselves with no stress involved.
Abby: What kind of culture have you worked to create within your staff?
Melissa: We always talk about making sure every kid feels loved. We’ve got adults that have been coming back for years-- some even from day one of Newton Youth Players-- and they’re all committed to making sure the kids feel loved. Everyone is lovely and respectful, and we try to make it a no-stress show for each other, as well.
We also have lots of really terrific high school students who help out, and they just keep coming back and taking on more and more responsibility. They become our choreographers and our stage managers, and they gain great experiences in terms of working with kids. Our ratio is three students for every one adult, which just means that the kids get a lot of individual care. It’s a very caring community for staff and kids.
Abby: Anything else you’d like to add?
Melissa: I just want to encourage people to join our community. We’ve got kids, and even sets of siblings, who have been with us for years and years, so it really is a theater family. We’d love for you to join us.
Melissa: They’re just so funny and amazing and they can do anything onstage. It’s really incredible, a group of kids can put together a show. By the end they’re so proud of themselves and you’re so proud of them because they really own the show. It’s a joy to work with them.
Abby: Could you outline the trajectory of your work in arts education?
Melissa: In college, I was part of a small children’s theater troupe-- we put on fairy tales for kids and would travel around Binghamton to libraries and schools. Then when I went to get my graduate degree in theatre education from Emerson, I started running the kindergarten through third grade theater program at the Chestnut Hill School summer camp. That was where I started doing musicals with kids. I did that for a few summers, and then went away to get my PhD. When I came back I missed it so much, so after my kids got a bit older I went to city hall and suggested to Linda Plaut that we try a production of Annie with elementary school kids. She said, “let’s do it.” Quickly that became Newton Youth Players, and we grew from one show a season to four different casts doing the same musical. I spent 12 years working for the city, and then just this year we decided that it was a good time to leave the city’s program and start something new at Newton Theatre Company. Of course, we maintain the Newton Youth Players philosophy of finding the joy of theater with elementary school kids. Right now, we’re up to three casts in the fall, and we will be doing four casts in the winter.
Abby: Why do you think arts education is important?
Melissa: First of all, the arts tell us so much about what it means to be human. Art poses so many questions-- a lot more questions than answers-- so there’s so much to explore. And in terms of education, there are so many kids who are passionate about so many different things, and it’s not always academics or athletics. Oftentimes, you see so much passion in a kid for something aesthetic, and it’s just so great to have an outlet for your passion, even at a young age. And then there are the kids who just like doing it casually-- even if theater is just one of the many things they like doing, our program makes it easy to participate without having to sacrifice other interests.
Abby: What impact have you seen your programs have on children?
Melissa: So there’s the typical theater kid-- we’ll have a kid come in in second grade, do every single show for five years, and then go on to be excited about it in middle school and high school. I even get emails from moms telling me about the shows their kids are in now, years later. For me, it’s exciting to see the passion they had as an eight year old continue to blossom.
And then there are also kids that come through our program who don’t pursue theater. I was recently at Rancatore's in Newtonville, and it turned out that the girl giving me ice cream-- who was a sophomore in college studying sociology-- had been in Newton Youth Players. And all these years later, she still remembered the program: she was bringing up all these great memories she had of all the children she worked with. She could name every show she was in and what part she had. It made me so happy to know that we’re a part of her after-school memories-- that we really are a community.
Abby: What makes Newton Theatre Kids (NTK) unique?
Melissa: We have a very unique philosophy, and it starts right when the kids get in the room. We always begin in a circle, which I think is the perfect metaphor: everyone’s voice is important. I make sure I can see everyone’s face and that everyone can see each other, because this circle is all about creating a beautiful ensemble community.
It’s also very unique because we get to see these younger kids-- kindergarteners and up-- really grow and mature and handle things. I think they feel very grown up doing it with the older kids, and the older kids-- the fourth and fifth graders-- are so incredibly helpful to the younger kids, so it’s this great multi-age community.
The idea of the “no-stress show” is also a big part of it. We keep expectations reasonable so the kids are able to do a great little show and feel proud of themselves with no stress involved.
Abby: What kind of culture have you worked to create within your staff?
Melissa: We always talk about making sure every kid feels loved. We’ve got adults that have been coming back for years-- some even from day one of Newton Youth Players-- and they’re all committed to making sure the kids feel loved. Everyone is lovely and respectful, and we try to make it a no-stress show for each other, as well.
We also have lots of really terrific high school students who help out, and they just keep coming back and taking on more and more responsibility. They become our choreographers and our stage managers, and they gain great experiences in terms of working with kids. Our ratio is three students for every one adult, which just means that the kids get a lot of individual care. It’s a very caring community for staff and kids.
Abby: Anything else you’d like to add?
Melissa: I just want to encourage people to join our community. We’ve got kids, and even sets of siblings, who have been with us for years and years, so it really is a theater family. We’d love for you to join us.