Ensemble Is Core: Building a Community with your Theatre students

Episode 155: Ensemble Is Core Teacher Carrie Reiberg has long known about the place that theatre can give a person. The theatre is a community. To that end, she also knows the importance and the value of ensemble. Ensemble is Core. She could not have done the work she did on the physically driven piece Emotional Baggage until she had built a community with her students. Listen in to hear Carrie talk about the experience, how she empowered students to come up with their own blocking, and how Frantic Assembly inspired the process. Show Notes Emotional Baggage  Frantic Assembly Frantic Assembly Youtube Drama Teacher Academy PLCs Drama Teacher Academy Episode Transcript Welcome to TFP – The Theatrefolk Podcast – the place to be for Drama teachers, Drama students, and theatre educators everywhere. Woohoo! I had to get excited there! I’m Lindsay Price, resident playwright for Theatrefolk. Hello! I hope you're well. Thanks for listening! This is Episode 155. You can find any links to this episode in the show notes which are at theatrefolk.com/episode155. Before I get started, I wanted to let you guys know about two upcoming free – that’s right, free just for you – events. Theatrefolk is hosting two live PLCs – professional learning communities. We are holding them through Google Hangouts where a host, moi, and a panel are going to discuss and problem solve on topics that are important to drama teachers and drama educators. There’s also a very active chatroom where there is more discussion and more problem-solving. It’s an absolutely amazing experience. I love doing these. You also get a certificate of attendance which I know some of you can use with your administrators. Our first one is tonight, April 19th at 8 PM Eastern, and we are talking about assessment. I know that is a big topic for lots of you – assessment. But, if you’re not listening today, do not fret! We have a second live PLC – professional learning community – on April 29th at 8 PM Eastern and it’s going to be a Q&A. we’re going to have teachers and topic experts onboard to discuss questions. It could be classroom management, improv, assessment, the ensemble, and more. It’s going to be awesome. You can find a link for both these events in the show notes at theatrefolk.com/episode155. And, now, back to our regularly scheduled program. So, a lot of these interviews come from chance. Someone emails me with some show pictures that look interesting and that starts a conversation with a teacher I have never met and this is one of those conversations and it’s so lovely. I love it. I love it. I love what Carrie Reiberg not only has to say about her experience but what she has to share with you. So, let’s get to it. LINDSAY: All right. I am speaking with Carrie Reiberg. Hello, Carrie! CARRIE: Hi! LINDSAY: So, Carrie had a wonderful way for remembering for me how to say her name which was rye bread on an iceberg and I just think that’s a wonderful image and I wanted to share it with all of you. Carrie, tell everybody where in the world you are. CARRIE: I am in Indianapolis, Indiana.