Report To The Community 2021

inging the performing
arts to schools
A core part of NJPAC’s arts education programming
has long focused on bringing the performing arts to
schoolchildren — either by bringing them to the Arts Center’s
theaters, or by sending teaching artists into classrooms.
While most schools had not yet resumed field
trips in 2021, this work continued, as NJPAC’s Arts
Education department devised residencies that
could be delivered virtually or in-person.
“The first big step was creating a safe
space for teaching artists and
students to work, then easing them
back into the fundamentals, getting
them back to focusing on connection,
awareness, response.”
– E. Bradshaw
covers for the woodwind and
brass instruments, we purchased
specific masks that you can
open up to access the mouth
but still cover the nose. We
took all these extra precautions
because the students needed
to be able to play together —
that’s what jazz is!”
Another innovation: In The Mix,
a free program that allows
students from all NJPAC classes
to gather together and create art
works on themes of social justice,
became a hybrid program.
Both virtual and in-person
students met together, thanks
to technological innovations.
“We had to take the time to work
out the technical kinks,” says Bell.
“We found a room with a big
screen, so everyone could see
everyone else clearly, and we
had a speaker system and mics,
so everyone could be heard.
Because In The Mix is studentdriven
and conversation-driven,
it was the perfect way to pilot
that hybrid experience.”
Not only did the program
thrive, but students involved
over the course of the year
produced their own podcast,
featuring their music, spoken
word creations and even
an interview with NJPAC
Jazz Advisor and Board
Member Christian McBride.
In addition to the physical
restrictions of teaching the arts
during a pandemic, there were
changes that had to be made to
NJPAC’s pedagogical approach
as well. The Arts Center had
already embedded social
workers in each class before
the pandemic, but they were
called on even more as students
returned from an anxious year
of learning under lockdown.
Students from the Act Out Loud
theater class practice scene work
for their final share.
“The first step was just making
sure the kids were okay,
creating a safe space for
teaching artists and students
to work, then easing them
back into the fundamentals,
focusing on connection,
awareness and response,”
says E. Bradshaw, Director
of Theater Arts Education.
“We had classes when half
the kids would be home with
COVID-19 and we’d say: Okay,
let’s talk it out, share whatever
you want. We talked about
anxiety and stress. The process
of making art was so helpful
to them — we sneak a lot of
life skills in with the fun stuff.”
End of semester student
performances, a vital part
of each class, presented their
own challenges: The NJPAC
tradition of having potluck
celebrations after each student
share performance was out.
Extra microphones were
brought into the performance
space, so students could be
heard even with their masks on.
And for families not comfortable
with attending live events, a
private livestream of the student
performances was filmed.
This proved vital not just for
parents but for staff as well:
Bradshaw, a new member
of the faculty who came on
board during the pandemic
closure, was unable to attend
their first in-person student
share at NJPAC, because they
caught COVID-19 at the end
of the semester. But they were
able to watch the livestream.
“And I was just crying watching
them,” they recall. “We had this
one young woman in our class,
15 years old, who had talked
about never getting to play the
lead. Well she had the lead in
our performance — and she
just took our breath away.”
“That’s what this program is
all about: Students telling us
where they want to go, and
us figuring out how we can
help them get there.” •
“We saw what was happening to the arts teachers in
public schools, they were becoming support staff for
teachers in the core areas. So we started to do really
intentional arts integration work, tying the arts to literacy.
Doriane Swain
presents the life of
jazz legend Lena
Horne virtually in
the SchoolTime
production of
Lena: A Moment
with a Lady.
It’s a way we can keep arts in the classroom, while
supporting classroom teachers and their schools,” says
Jennifer Tsukayama, Vice President of Arts Education.
Storytelling Through Dance and Storytelling Through Drama
were created as virtual, asynchronous residencies that schools
could use during fall 2020. These opportunities for students
to engage with reading material, by acting out both the story
on the page and their own versions of each tale, were the
Arts Center’s most popular offering for schools during the
pandemic. In summer 2021, they were reimagined as virtual or
in-person residency offerings, with new learning goals and a
deeper integration of the arts and core content subject matter.
Meanwhile, NJPAC’s SchoolTime Performances, which in a typical
year bring thousands of children to the Arts Center’s theaters,
were offered as virtual performances, including one about
the life of jazz legend Lena Horne. In-person performances
for schoolchildren are slated to return in spring 2022.
In a new twist on the series, the printed Teacher Resource
Guides included with each performance — which
typically offer more information to contextualize the
performance for students — were reimagined as podcasts
that virtual classes could listen to as well as read. •
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