Katherine Mapother

Katherine Mapother is passionate about the power of using theatre to reach young people.  Katherine has performed as an actor and singer for over 25 years.  For the past 16 years, she has worked as a teacher, teaching artist and program director, both in the U.S. and Africa.  In Namibia, she taught high school English and created an award-winning theatre program for young people.  She then performed in and led drama workshops throughout New York City as an actor-teacher for the largest educational theatre company in the country, the Creative Arts Team.

After training American college students to teach in rural schools in Kenya, Katherine returned to Louisville to take a position with Blue Apple Players.  In 2000, she established the Education Department for this children’s theater company and served as its Education Director for six years.  Under her leadership, drama programs promoted learning in various school subjects, built student self-esteem and community engagement, and helped improve state test scores at partnering schools.

After working with Katherine, students respond:

“Before you came I never really understood poetry, or the right way to interpret it.  I feel like you helped me in breaking that wall.”
 
“I want to say thank you.  You have helped me so much... My confidence in front of a crowd is much higher.  I feel very comfortable now.  You have helped me to learn how to use my body, voice, and my imagination a lot.  Knowing these things can help me during my performance.  Thanks for all you did.  It was great.”

And from teachers:

"In junior high it is important to get the students out of their seats.  My ideas of getting into groups and writing on the board are limited.  I loved learning about all the strategies to use to get students up and involved.”

“The children looked forward to the well-structured sessions.  Their group work improved (they found ways to get along better) and I learned from them, too.”

“[Her] enthusiasm, personality, core and guidance deeply motivated my class to new heights, especially in drama.”

Katherine has an MA in Educational Theatre from New York University and a BA in English from the University of Notre Dame.  She continues to perform in local theater and delights in collaborating with teachers and students throughout her home state.

This is one of a number of theatre residencies offered.  My focus is on promoting student achievement and meeting teachers’ needs.  With this in mind, I welcome the opportunity to work with teachers to create residency plans helping them reach their goals.

Exploring Drama through an African Folk Tale
Gr. 1-5
Residency Length:  10 days

Project Goals and Teaching Format
In this residency, students will engage with a West African folk tale while learning literary, technical and performance elements of drama.  Active drama strategies will be used during every workshop.  We will begin with an introduction to theatre and the tools of an actor (body, voice, imagination).  Next, we will look to the African continent and prepare for exploring the environment and culture of our folktale.  With storytelling, still images and movement, we will meet and explore the characters of our tale and identify the story line (including character, plot and setting).

Using the story as a basis, students will then create and perform their own scenes through improvisation, incorporating simple technical elements such as costumes, props and sound.  Students will be encouraged to share performance feedback using positive, constructive ideas.   The overall goal of the residency is to leave students feeling successful.

This project would mesh very well with a school's focus on African culture.

KY Core Content Goals (Primary/Gr. 4/Gr. 5) Addressed in Residency:

• identify drama terms (AH-SA-S-DT1)
• use elements of drama to create and perform dramatic works (AH-SA-S-DT2)
• observe, describe and apply creative dramatics (AH-SA-S-DT3)
• demonstrate an understanding of cultural elements-W. Africa (SS-CS-S-1)
• understand how literature reflects the culture of West Africa (AH-HA-S-DT1)
• use knowledge of the elements of drama to describe and critique their own performances and that of others (AH-PA-S-DT2)
• demonstrate audience behavior appropriate to context (AH-PA-S-DT4)
• discuss opinions with peers in a supportive and constructive way (AH-PA-S-DT4)

Promoting Thinking Skills & Creativity
My curricula and teaching style very much encourage creative and critical thinking.  Throughout the residency I will elicit information from students to find out what they know and use open-ended questions to promote higher-order thinking.  I emphasize that one of my favorite aspects of drama is how many rich, creative possibilities exist for expressing an idea.  Students learn that when we are involved in the process of creative expression, there’s no right or wrong answer.

I establish a warm, safe environment from the beginning so that a clear structure contains our creative process while students are having fun.  Also, by getting students on their feet throughout the residency, they discover quickly that they have valuable ideas and can have a good time communicating them.

Writing Component
During workshops we will write to gather ideas as a group.  Daily follow-up activities will include writing, drawing and sensory work.

Teacher Involvment
I have a conscious approach to including teachers in all activities and providing meaningful extensions to workshop material.

Parent Involvement
On the first day of the residency, students will take home an Africa fact-finding sheet to fill out with their parents.  Students can also share other follow-up activities with parents.  Parents are welcome to attend the informal sharing of student scenes at the end of the residency.