Passport TO CULTURE Teacher s Resource Guide S C H O O L T I M E P E R F O R M A N C E Grades 3-8 S E R I E S S C H O O L Y E A R 2 0 0 9-2 0 1 0 First Stop on the A Train New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble just imagine Jeffrey Foote and Robin Barker Photo courtesy of Bloomfield College Generous support for Schooltime provided, in part, by
just imagine Arts Education and You The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) Arts Education Department presents the 13 th season of the Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Performance Series. With Passport to Culture, Verizon and NJPAC open up a world of culture to you and your students, offering the best in live performance from a wide diversity of traditions and disciplines. At NJPAC s state-of-the-art facility in Newark, with support from Verizon, the SchoolTime Performance Series enriches the lives of New Jersey s students and teachers by inviting them to see, feel, and hear the joy of artistic expression. The exciting roster of productions features outstanding New Jersey companies as well as performers of national and international renown. Meet-the-artist sessions and NJPAC tours are available to expand the arts adventure. CONTENTS On Stage 3 In the Spotlight 4 Dance Talk 5 The Harlem Renaissance 6 Before and After Activities 7 Teaching Science Through Dance Foundation Kid Power! Through energy efficiency and conservation, kids can help preserve our planet s rich natural resources and promote a healthy environment. Tip of the Day During the era of the Harlem Renaissance, awareness of the need to protect the Earth s environment was not as widespread as it is today. Now, we are acutely conscious of the necessity to go green in order to curb harmful effects on the natural world. Did you know that by buying and using environmentally friendly green products such as non-toxic household cleaners and personal products, you can help minimize the negative effect chemicals can have on our air, water, soil, animal life, and plants? Made possible through the generosity of the PSEG Foundation. Delving Deeper 8 7 The Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Performance Series is one of many current arts education offerings at NJPAC. Others include: Professional Development Workshops that support the use of the arts to enhance classroom curriculum Arts Academy school residency programs in dance, theater and literature, and Early Learning Through the Arts the NJ Wolf Trap Program After-school residencies with United Way agencies In association with statewide arts organizations, educational institutions, and generous funders, the Arts Education Department sponsors the following arts training programs: Wachovia Jazz for Teens The All-State Concerts The Star-Ledger Scholarship for the Performing Arts The Jeffery Carollo Music Scholarship Summer Youth Performance Workshop Young Artist Institute NJPAC/New Jersey Youth Theater Summer Musical Program Students have the opportunity to audition for admission to NJPAC s arts training programs during NJPAC s annual Young Artist Talent Search. Detailed information on these programs is available online at njpac.org. Click on Education. The Teacher s Resource Guide and additional activities and resources for each production in the Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Series are also online. Click on Education, then on Performances. Scroll down to Download Teacher Guide in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and select desired guide. Permission is granted to copy this Teacher s Resource Guide for classes attending the 2009-2010 Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Performance Series. All other rights reserved. To Teachers and Parents The resource guide accompanying each performance is designed to maximize students enjoyment and appreciation of the performing arts; to extend the impact of the performance by providing discussion ideas, activities, and further reading that promote learning across the curriculum; to promote arts literacy by expanding students knowledge of music, dance, and theater; to illustrate that the arts are a legacy reflecting the traditional values, customs, beliefs, expressions, and reflections of a culture; to use the arts to teach about the cultures of other people and to celebrate students own heritage through self-expression; to reinforce the New Jersey Department of Education s Core Curriculum Content Standards in the arts. 2
Photo: Courtesy of Bloomfield College On Stage The NJTAP company in The Party from First Stop on the A Train History and dance partner in First Stop on the A Train as the New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble (NJTAP) spotlights the dynamic energy of tap and the creative contributions of African-American artists to this dance form. In its music and interpretations, the Ensemble traces the cultural and political lineage of tap dance through the past 75 years. The troupe s performance is inspired by the artistry of pioneering African-American dancers such as Bill Bojangles Robinson and today s new tap generation that includes Newark resident Savion Glover and the late Gregory Hines. The production kicks off by transporting the audience to New York City during the Harlem Renaissance which began after the end of World War I and lasted until the mid-1930s. During this period, black artistic expression flowered and flourished, giving voice to the hopes, aspirations, fears, and joys of ordinary people. Recreating the era s explosive creative energy, First Stop on the A Train contains a rousing ensemble number performed to Billy Strayhorn s highspirited Take the A Train, the Duke Ellington Band s theme song that also became the jazz anthem of New York City. The Party, Drop Me Off in Harlem, A Little Bit of Charleston, and Truckin, as performed by NJTAP, all portray the popular social dances and music of the day as well as the most popular form of theatrical dance at that time tap. In addition, nightclubs that were famous for presenting extraordinary AfricanAmerican tap artists are highlighted. The audience even gets to take a peek inside the Cotton Club, Harlem s most famous nightclub of the period where legends were made. Copasetics, which brought visibility and prestige back to tap dancing in the 1970s. Rock and Roll, the Motown Sound and the songs of girl groups are musical highlights as the dancers depict a new era in the United States reflected in the changes in dance, music, race relations, civil rights, and politics. First Stop on the A Train, which has been praised by The Star-Ledger as infectious and high-spirited, is narrated by Deborah Mitchell, NJTAP s founder and artistic director, for the SchoolTime performances, and narrated by guest artist Marie Thomas, founder and artistic director of Children s Theater/The Peppermint Players for the FamilyTime performance. The journey continues from the 1950s to the present day with works created by contemporary dancers and choreographers including Mr. Glover and Mr. Hines. The troupe also pays tribute to such groups as the 3
In the Spotlight Mitchell received three of tap s most prestigious awards in recognition of her extraordinary leadership in the field. The New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble is New Jersey s first statewide, non-profit tap dance company. Founded in 1994 by Ms. Mitchell, the organization s mission is to preserve and perpetuate the art form of rhythm tap dancing. This mission is fulfilled through the development of new tap works, concert performances, community outreach, and programs in arts education. The ethnically diverse troupe is primarily made up of New Jersey artists. From its base in Bloomfield, NJ, NJTAP serves as a training ground for tap artists who wish to reach a level of proficiency beyond the dance school experience. It also provides performance opportunities for accomplished dancers to continue their development. Known for artistic excellence in performance, NJTAP has become one of the most prominent touring tap companies in the United States, performing their version of rhythm tap dance across the county. Photo: Lois Bohovesky Deborah Mitchell, the founder and artistic director of the New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble, is a noted teacher and strong advocate for arts education. She began tap dancing at the age of six when her mother enrolled her in a St. Louis dance school. Ms. Mitchell was the protégé of Leslie Bubba Gaines of the Copasetics and a student of legendary tap masters including Broadway choreographer Henry LeTang. Her many credits include the movie The Cotton Club, the Broadway and Paris productions of Black and Blue, PBS s Great Performances, five international tours with the jazz great Cab Calloway, and a partnership with Philadelphia native Germaine Goodson as The Rhythm Queens. In 2007, Ms. Deborah Mitchell 4
Photo: Carol Rosegg Dance Talk The New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble All dance has three basic building blocks: space - the whole design and use of the place in which a dance unfolds. time - a measurable period during which movement or dance occurs. Time is indicated in dance in many ways that may range from complex rhythmic patterns to periods of long, unbroken stillness. energy - the intensity, amount or force of the movement, also sometimes referred to as the quality, color or texture of the movement. Adjectives such as restless, restrained, unrestrained, calm, smooth, free, concentrated, furtive, tense, explosive, fiery, etc., may be used to describe this aspect of dance. Other relevant terms that will enhance understanding and appreciation of a dance performance are: choreography - the arrangement of movement in time and space. jazz - a musical form, created primarily by African Americans near the turn of the 20th century in New Orleans, that combines elements drawn from European-American and African music. Jazz is characterized by syncopation, polyphonic melodies, ensemble performances, and the pervasive practice of improvisation among jazz musicians. jazz dance is loose-limbed, carefree and seemingly improvised; its rhythms pervade the entire body. tap dance - an American art form and style of percussive dancing that blends the syncopated drumming and dance rhythms of West African traditions with dances from the British Isles such as reels, jigs, hornpipes, and clogging. Although it has similar roots with jazz dance (and shares some movements), tap differs from jazz dancing in that its rhythms are centered in the feet, not the whole body. Tap dancing was a part of theatrical stage entertainments throughout the 19th century, but the use of metal plates, or taps, attached to the heel and toe did not become common until after 1910. Before then, wooden pieces were set into the dancer s shoes or small nails or pennies were pounded into the soles to create the tapping sound. In rhythm tap, the style of tap performed by NJTAP, the dancers become percussive musical artists and instruments, producing intricate, rhythmic patterns and phrasing with their feet. Rhythm tap (also called heel and toe, jazz tap or close rhythm) was introduced in the 1920s and is characterized by close footwork and many heel drops to create a rhythmic beat. The result is the unique rhythms of jazz music (often the accompaniment of tap) that distinguishes American tap dance from all other kinds of dancing based on percussive footwork. 5
Did You Know? The Harlem Renaissance Harlem, a neighborhood in northern Manhattan, was first settled by the Dutch in the 1630s. In the 19 th century, it was a white suburb. By the turn of the 20 th century, it had become the home for a vibrant black middle class. After World War I (1914-1918), three-quarters of a million African Americans, rejecting the institutionalized racism of Dixie and seeking a better life, emigrated from the rural South to the cities of the North including New York s Harlem. This Great Migration, along with immigration from the West Indies and Africa, resulted in a mix of cultures that helped spark a newfound sense of black unity, confidence and pride. This new identity that emerged in Harlem came to be known as the Harlem Renaissance. It was a burst of creative and intellectual activity celebrating black life and culture in literature, drama, poetry, music (especially jazz, the blues and the black music of the south), the visual arts, and dance. In its exploration of both the historical experiences of rural black America and the contemporary urban black experience, the Harlem Renaissance sought to dispel common stereotypes through art, helping to redefine how white America viewed African Americans and laying a foundation for the Civil Rights struggles of the 1950s and 1960s. The economic hardships of the Depression (1929-1940) brought an end to the Harlem Renaissance, but it had planted the seeds for a creative climate that would nurture future African- American artists such as James Baldwin, Amiri Baraka, Richard Wright, Alice Walker, Toni Morrison, Spike Lee, Bill T. Jones, and others. Photo: courtesy of Alfred Gaines The first part of First Stop on the A Train celebrates the energy and elegance associated with the Harlem Renaissance and the contributions of the African- American artists, writers, dancers actors, musicians, and intellectuals, including: Poet Langston Hughes (1902-1967), who published his first book of poems, The Weary Blues, in 1926, was inspired by the sights and sounds of Harlem its people, The Three Dukes performing to Billy Strayborn s Take the A Train. music, dance, and street life. Much of his poetry is based on the rhythms of jazz and the blues two musical forms that were key elements in the Harlem Renaissance. In addition to poetry, Hughes wrote novels, short stories, essays, plays, film scripts, opera librettos, and an autobiography. Novelist, folklorist, anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960), a pioneer in the study of African-American folklore, traveled throughout the South and the Caribbean for her research. The first black graduate of Barnard College, she was an outspoken advocate for civil rights. Her best known novel is Their Eyes Were Watching God, published in 1937. Composer, musician and bandleader Duke Ellington (1899-1974), a leading figure in jazz history, is recognized as an innovator. He gave jazz a new feeling and swing with special effects by using instruments in new ways and infusing African and Latin American elements into his compositions. Take the A Train is among his most famous works. Sculptor Augusta Savage (1892-1962), a noted portraitist, sculpted the faces of numerous African-American leaders including W. E. B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey and Frederick Douglas. Having struggled to succeed in her field despite barriers of both race and gender, she worked throughout her life for equal rights and established a studio in Harlem, where she guided and influenced young African- American artists. Dancer Bill Bojangles Robinson (1878-1949), considered by many to be the greatest tap dancer of all time, did not become famous until the age of 50 when he appeared on Broadway in Blackbirds of 1928. He then went on to star in films, where his partner in several movies was a very young Shirley Temple. Acclaimed singer and actor Paul Robeson (1898-1976) was also a professional athlete, writer, multi-lingual orator, and lawyer. A political activist, he spoke out against Fascism and racism both in the United States and abroad. More shining lights of the Harlem Renaissance can be found online at njpac. org. Click on Education, then SchoolTime Performances. Scroll down and click on MORE: Teacher Guides and Curriculum Materials. Select the guide and resources pages that are designed in PDF format. 6
In the Classroom Before the Performance 1. Why Dance? is an arts-integrated resource of Verizon s Thinkfinity.org. In this lesson, one of a multi-part unit from ARTSEDGE, students identify reasons why people dance. Centers are set up to research various kinds of dance. After exploring three centers, students create a dance, poem, report, or collage to explain why people dance. Artsedge. kennedy-enter.org/content/2319 (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4)* 2. Discuss the term renaissance. What does it mean? Have students research the derivation and history of the term. The Harlem Renaissance occurred during the 1920s and 30s. Create a timeline or bulletin board for these decades. Collect images representing the period flappers; Model-Ts; swing bands; dancers doing the Charleston, Big Apple and Lindy hop; prohibition; bank failures; and bread lines. Include images that capture the artistic essence of the period in the works of painters, sculptors, dancers, musicians, and playwrights, etc. Discuss changes that were taking place in the country and how the music and dance reflected those changes. Prepare a timeline of the major artistic, political and historical events that occurred during this period in America and around the world. (1.2, 1.4)* After the Performance 1. Discuss the performance with the students. Which dance do they remember the most? Why? Which dance did they like least? Why? How did the lighting, scenery and costumes contribute to the production? What did the students like best about the performance? Have each student write a review of the performance for the school newspaper or the town paper. (1.4) 2. Divide the class into groups of three and four. Ask each group to create its own rhythmic phrase using hand clapping, body clapping and/or foot tapping. Have each group develop the phrase into a short routine and perform it for the class. (1.1, 1.3) * Number(s) indicate the NJ Core Curriculum Content Standard(s) supported by the activity. Teaching Science Through Dance (Grades 6-12) By Sharon J. Sherman, Ed.D. Science helps us understand how the world works. It is a systematic way to produce useful models of reality. Dance is a way to create and communicate meaning. In middle and high school, many science concepts can be illustrated using dance. This student-centered approach, which uses critical and creative thinking, provides a way for students to express what they know. Life science principles are powerful conceptual tools for making sense of the complexity, diversity and interconnectedness of life on Earth. In middle school science, students learn that plants are producers. They use the energy from light to make food (sugar) from carbon dioxide and water. Plants are used as a source of food (energy) for other organisms. You can have your students create a dance to describe the sources of the reactants of photosynthesis and trace the pathway to the products. Have them accurately perform a planned dance sequence demonstrating aspects of time, space/shape and energy. All animals and most plants interact and depend on each other and carry out specific functional roles within their ecosystem. These relationships influence the stability of the ecosystem. Students study this concept, called interdependence, in life science classes beginning in the lower grades and continuing through middle and high school. Children in kindergarten through second grade study the ways in which organisms interact with each other and their habitat in order to meet basic needs. Third and fourth graders predict the biotic and abiotic characteristics of an unfamiliar organism s habitat. Fifth and sixth graders predict the impact altering biotic and abiotic factors has on an ecosystem. Middle school students model the effect of positive and negative changes in population size on a symbiotic pairing such as predator/prey, producer/consumer or scavenger/prey. In high school, learning progresses to a higher level when students model how natural and human-made changes in the environment will affect individual organisms and the dynamics of populations. Each one of these ideas can be illustrated through dance. You can have your students plan or improvise a dance to model understanding of interdependence. Students can critique each other s work using the critical process of observing, describing, analyzing, interpreting, and evaluating the dance to judge its merits. Sharon J. Sherman, Ed.D. is Dean of the School of Education and Professor of Teacher Education at Rider University in Lawrenceville, NJ. The Teaching Science Through the Arts content of this guide is made possible through the generous support of Roche. Additional Before and After activities can be found online at njpac.org. Click on Education, then SchoolTime Performances. Scroll down and click on MORE: Teacher Guides and Curriculum Materials. Select the guide and resource pages desired in PDF format. 7
Delving Deeper Books for Students Glover, Savion, and Bruce Weber. Savion!: My Life in Tap. William Morrow and Co., 2000. Heback, Susan. Tap Dancing. Children s Press, 2002. Koopmans, Andy. The Harlem Renaissance. Lucent Books, 2005. Books for Teachers Bloom, Harold, ed. The Harlem Renaissance, Chelsea House Publishers, 2003. Frank, Rusty. TAP!: The Greatest Tap Dance Stars and Their Stories, 1900-1955. Da Capo Press, 1995. DVDs Tap Dancing for Beginners with Henry LeTang. Kultur Video, 2007. Bojangles. Film about the life of Bill Bojangles Robinson, starring Gregory Hines. Entertainment, 2002. Websites NJTAP.org - Website of the New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble. nyplpa.org - Website of the New York Public Library of the Performing Arts which has one of the world s greatest collection of dance-, music- and theaterrelated books, videos, CDs, films, and other materials. Acknowledgments as of 11/06/09 NJPAC Arts Education programs are made possible by the generosity of: Bank of America, Allen & Joan Bildner & The Bildner Family Foundation, The Arts Education Endowment Fund in Honor of Raymond G. Chambers, Leon & Toby Cooperman, The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Amy C. Liss, McCrane Foundation, Merck Company Foundation, Albert & Katharine Merck, The Prudential Foundation, The PSEG Foundation, David & Marian Rocker, The Sagner Family Foundation, The Star-Ledger/Samuel I. Newhouse Foundation, Surdna Foundation, The Turrell Fund, Verizon, Victoria Foundation, Wachovia, The Wal-Mart Foundation and The Women s Association of NJPAC. Additional support is provided by: Advance Realty Foundation, C.R. Bard Foundation, Becton, Dickinson & Company, The Frank and Lydia Bergen Foundation, Bloomberg, Chase, The Citi Foundation, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Veronica Goldberg Foundation, Meg & Howard Jacobs, Johnson & Johnson, Kraft Foods, Marianthi Foundation, The MCJ Amelior Foundation, The New Jersey State Council on the Arts, The George A. Ohl, Jr., Foundation, Pechter Foundation, PNC Foundation on behalf of the PNC Grow Up Great program, The Provident Bank Foundation, E. Franklin Robbins Charitable Trust, Roche, TD Charitable Foundation, Target, The United Way of Essex & West Hudson, Lucy and Eleanor S. Upton Charitable Foundation, The Edward W. & Stella C. Van Houten Memorial Fund, and The Blanche M. & George L. Watts Mountainside Community Foundation. For even more arts integration resources, please go to Thinkfinity.org, the Verizon Foundation s signature digital learning platform, designed to improve educational and literacy achievement. William J. Marino....Chairman Lawrence P. Goldman........President & Chief Executive Officer Sandra Bowie......Vice President for Arts Education Sanaz Hojreh......Assistant Vice President for Arts Education Donna Bost-White.....Director for Arts Education/Special Projects Jeffrey Griglak........Director for Arts Training Verushka Spirito......Associate Director for Performances Ambrose Liu.......Associate Director for Residencies Caitlin Evans Jones.... Associate Director for Residencies Faye Competello......Associate Director for Arts Training Mary Whithed........Program Coordinator for Residencies Joanna Gibson...Manager of Wachovia Jazz for Teens Kristi Henderson...Marketing and Sales Manager Laura Ingoglia.........Editor of Teacher s Resource Guides 8 One Center Street Newark, New Jersey 07102 Administration: 973 642-8989 Arts Education Hotline: 973 353-8009 artseducation@njpac.org NJPAC wishes to thank Deborah Mitchell, founder and artistic director of the New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble, for her assistance in preparing this guide. Writer: Trudy Garfunkel Editor: Laura Ingoglia Design: Pierre Sardain 66 Creative, Inc. 66Creative.com NJPAC Guest Reader: Lauren Glassman Teacher s Guide Review Committee: Judith Israel Mary Lou Johnston Amy Tenzer Copyright 2010 New Jersey Performing Arts Center All Rights Reserved