Keola Simpson, M.F.A., Dickinson, Theatre and Dance
Advanced Performance & Production
My participation with Valley & Ridge was to develop a new theatre class, Advanced Performance & Production. A.P.P. is an experimental theatre course that puts actors & dancers, directors & choreographers, writers, and designers in the room together with the semester-long goal of creating inquiry-based / place-based new works, with a public showing at the end of the semester.
Experiential and collaborative in design, A.P.P. begins in small groups, investigating place-based topics, people, and historical moments that challenge students to reflect on their values and worldviews. The group sizes grow over the semester, as does the complexity of the topics they narrow down to. Resulting/existing social, economic, and environmental systems are challenged. Action-oriented solutions are also challenged. Conflict and questions begin to shape a narrative as students move toward their goal of a new play.
At Valley & Ridge, the framework for A.P.P. was laid out for me. I can organize the intentions of this course thanks to Valley & Ridge. The discussions, presentations, and hearing from Valley & Ridge alumni inspired my imagination for the course. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals clearly articulate the topics that this course wants to engage in, and allows us to address the UNESCO Key Competencies for Sustainability.
Importantly, what became clear to me at Valley & Ridge, is that this course isn’t just for Theatre and Dance majors. You don’t need to have any performance experience in order to fully engage in this type of place-based investigative work. As I prepare for a spring 2025 Special Topics version of A.P.P., I’m thankful for Valley & Ridge and the discoveries that were unlocked for me.