Bio
Robert Martin, (Bob or bobbyb!) works as a theater/film artist, community arts producer, cultural organizer, trainer/facilitator and teaching artist. He is passionate about using story, theater, and media to create and collaborate in performance and art that is rooted in the needs, memories and possibilities of the community from which it is born. Bob actively uses cultural organizing and story work to examine the intersections of various communities to build dynamic partnerships and to bring people into deep creative collaboration. He holds a Bachelor in Fine Arts in Theater from The Hartt School and the University of Hartford and a master’s in Applied Theater from the City University of New York.
Bob works with youth of all ages and offers residencies at the elementary, middle and high school levels developing theater, stories, digital stories and films. His work spans from creating original theater from a youth or community-based experience to using pre-existing text, plays and stories as a springboard for theatrical games, role plays and activities where a group can immerse themselves within a world.
Potential Residency Project
All of my work deeply engages students in using their bodies, minds and voices while fostering their imagination, creativity and collaboration. I work closely with teachers to ensure they are being fully supported and develop new skills during the residency. Together we create a residency that is specifically suited to the needs of your group or community while boosting your school's Arts and Humanities Program Review. Students will also have an opportunity to meet and excel in the Kentucky Core Academic Standards for the Arts and Humanities.
Examples Include:
- Creating a process drama where students can deeply engage with material or subject matter embodying all sides of an issue through role play and critical assessment of cultural dynamics. Process drama subjects could include: child labor and the Industrial Revolution, Civil Rights movement, early Kentucky settlement, lunar landing, politics, sports, war, etc.
- Exploring a literary or theatrical work through theater games and activities while developing new theatrical pieces through script writing, character development and performance tools and techniques. Literary or theatrical subjects could include: classical works of theater or literature, i.e., the works of William Shakespeare or Great Expectations; modern works of fiction or theater, i.e., Hunger Games or Rent; or the works of regional authors, i.e., Jesse Stuart, Jo Carson, Wendell Berry and Barbara Kingsolver.
- Devising an original piece of theater or film/digital story through a creative process including story-gathering, theatrical games and improvisation, and exploring performance tools and techniques.
- Creation of a youth-driven training video or theatrical presentation about a social or health issue that the school or community is facing.
- Developing a performative variety show, music video or play that investigates how young people are learning and interacting with a specific subject and explores their questions and connections.
- A youth-based musical or documentary that explores the challenges of being a young person in their particular community, the community’s history and ways the youth would like to see their community evolve.