Theatre and Dance partners with Cre8tive Drama to offer summer day camps for children

Posted May 20, 2016 at 1:35 p.m.

BOONE—Cre8tive Drama and the Department of Theatre and Dance at the Appalachian State University are partnering to offer a week-long summer Cre8tive Drama Day Camp. Designed to transform young people through drama and theatre arts, the camp will be offered daily starting Monday, June 27, in the Valborg Theatre on campus. The cost of this year’s camp is $125 per student for the week.

The program is offered in age-appropriate blocks when possible: block one for children 6 to 8, block two for ages 9 through 12, and block three for teenagers 13 to 16. Each daily session runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., but a full-day option is available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for $225 per student. All students must bring their own packed lunch and a refillable bottle of water, and light snacks are provided. Advance registration is required, and forms may be obtained by emailing theatre professor Gordon Hensley at hensleyg@appstate.edu.

According to Hensley, a faculty member in the College of Fine and Applied Arts and coordinator for the summer program, the camp focuses on creative drama. “Children and teens are challenged to think creatively and encouraged to work collaboratively while exploring drama and theatre,” he said.

Hensley works with trained theatre teacher assistants to lead these lively day classes for young people ages six to 16. “Drama and theatre is one of the primary ways children learn about life – about actions and consequences, about customs and beliefs, about others and themselves,” Hensley said. “This camp is unique because it focuses on the process instead of trying to produce a play in a week. We do not ‘put on a show’ per se.”

The goals of the program are to address language and communication, language practice and awareness of communication, problem solving skills, creativity, positive self-concept, social awareness, empathy, values and attitudes and an understanding of the art of theatre. The camp sessions address the eight basic drama structures: pantomime, drama games, storytelling, story drama, social drama, improvisation, process drama and puppetry.

“Cre8tive Drama is associated with our department because of our common mission of providing quality theatre and dance experiences to people of all ages,” remarked Kevin Warner, chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance. “The Drama Day Camp gives children and youth, in particular, an opportunity to explore creative drama and theatre in a safe, fun and highly experiential way.”

The Valborg Theatre is located on campus at the north side of Chapell Wilson Hall on Howard Street in Boone. The theatre entrance faces the back of the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts on King Street. Parking is available in the College Street parking deck near Belk Library and Information Commons.

About Cre8tive Drama

The mission of Cre8tive Drama is to transform young people through drama and theatre arts. The curriculum utilizes eight drama structures alongside the North Carolina Standard Course of Study to promote 21st Century skills that will last a lifetime. We use process style drama activities lead by trained teachers of theatre to strengthen eight areas: developing and strengthening language and communication, problem solving, positive self-concept, social awareness, empathy, values and attitudes and developing an understanding of the art of theatre.

About the Department of Theatre and Dance

The Department of Theatre and Dance is housed in the College of Fine and Applied Arts. Its mission is to provide liberal arts educational opportunities including B.A. degrees in dance studies and theatre arts. The department also values the opportunity to offer coursework for integrated learning through the arts to the general university student population. Vital to the support of this mission is a dynamic co-curricular production program that provides exemplary theatre and dance experiences to departmental students, the university community and the region. The departmental philosophy is to support the university’s liberal arts environment through a balanced and integrated emphasis on teaching, creative activity, scholarship and service.

About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.