Acting for a Cause

When it comes to unleashing a teen’s power of imagination (and promoting an extracurricular activity for the creatively-inclined), nothing really beats reading… except maybe theater. With Stage Write, a program created in partnership with Trinity Repertory Company, the Providence Public Library and Kids Reading Across Rhode Island (KRARI), students get the best of both worlds. 

“It made sense to partner up,” says Matt Tibbs, the School Partnerships Manager and Teaching Artist at Trinity Rep. “We have these great community institutions so close together, and we don’t really have much crossover or overlap, so this was a good opportunity.” 

Trinity Rep was recently designated the State Theatre of Rhode Island, and Matt correctly observes that educational partnerships are a piece of what’s necessary to live up to that title. In this way, Trinity Rep shares much in common with the public library system beyond being a mutual source of a rainy day escape. “Both of our institutions serve the public, and it’s important for us to be out in the community and serving parts of the state that may not have access to Trinity Rep. It puts us out there,” he says. 

This will be the third year of the partnership and enrollment has already started for the program. Students meet once a week on Thursdays at the downtown library, a stone’s throw from Trinity Rep, in the evening from January 19 until the end of May. During that time, Matt explains, the students will work together to mount an adaptation of whatever book KRARI has chosen for the school year. 

Matt says he’s not sure what the book this year will be; apparently KRARI keeps that pretty close to the vest. But he has great things to say about the work that was done in the program’s first and second years (Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Chris Grabenstein and Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo). As if creating an adaptation from scratch weren’t challenging enough, Matt and his dedicated team of high-school students (he’s had eight at a time in the past, mostly juniors and seniors from across the state) also take on props, costumes and staging. Since the group is small, Matt’s able to tailor the curriculum to students’ unique strengths and interests. 

The group first studies the process of adaptation, what it means and how it’s done. The Providence Public Library provides the students with copies of the book; after a thorough reading, they talk about how they might convey the narrative. “We spend a large chunk of the class time working on the adaptation, be it with group devising or character-based improv or sitting down with a pencil and paper,” says Matt. “We explore different techniques for adaptation.” 

“The adaptation is under staff guidance, but it’s completely [the students’] work, which is exciting and nerve-wracking for them,” he continues, referring to the short “trailer” show performed in front of the books’ author and other guests at the State House each year. 

After the show at the State House, Stage Write takes to the road, traveling to libraries across Rhode Island on an ambitious tour. Matt says that usually, the show will be mounted in five to six libraries – all free of charge and with the entire community invited to attend. 

“This is one of my favorite programs for a variety of reasons, but most of all, I think it’s so important and valuable for the students that sign up for this program because they get so much out of this one class,” Matt says. “They’re learning about acting and performance and adaptation, but it’s also a glimpse of what it’s like to be a real working actor in a company. It puts an emphasis on giving back to the community and working toward a cause – childhood literacy across the entire state. It’s a powerful opportunity for [students] to get plugged into a cause and a campaign that’s bigger than any one of them.” 

The fee to enroll in the program is $250, but scholarships are available. “I always like to say that finances should never be a barrier,” explains Matt, “so we’re always happy to work with any student who has a passion for theater and wants to learn.” 

Stage Write 
trinityrep.com
provlib.org
ribook.org/krari