Matrix develops young actors & writers - Summer Camp starts in July

Matrix Theatre Company’s Summer Creativity Camp returns in July 2010. Theatre professionals from Matrix’s School of Theatre bring environmental education and the transformative power of theatre to local youths ages eight to 18. Located at 2730 Bagley in Southwest Detroit’s Mexicantown, Matrix’s summer camps stress creativity, collaboration and community. Sessions focus on acting, puppetry and playwrighting, and field trips are planned. Each camp concludes with a showcase performance, where family and friends are welcome to share in the realization of the original works created. 

Three Creativity Camps will run between July 6 and August 6, for three age groups. They are:

From the Ground Up, for ages eight to 11: As part of the Matrix “Ghostwaters” project, students will use theatre and puppetry to learn about the wildlife that inhabits the waters of Detroit. Young artists will explore acting on an introductory level with emphasis on stage presence and character work. They will also learn the basics of puppet construction as they build hand and rod puppets.

The Environment and Me, for ages 11 to 14: Young artists discover how personal choices and actions affect the environment. Through improvisational writing and performance exercises the class will create a script about preserving our natural resources one person at a time, one decision at a time.

Better World, Better Me, ages 14 to 18: Teen artists will have the opportunity to develop a new play based on a pressing environmental issue of their choice. With mentoring in workshops on acting, poetry, dance and music, students will develop and present an original theatrical work. This work will be professionally performed at Matrix Theatre. The students will also have the opportunity to learn the technical aspects of live theatre. A field trip to an outdoor high/low ropes course will help to encourage students to conquer fears and work together, while a creativity-intensive weekend camping trip will bring them into nature.

For information on Matrix Theatre’s Summer Camps, or to register, please call 313-967-0999.

Matrix Theatre Company is a non-profit community-based theatre located in Southwest Detroit. Established in 1991, Matrix creates everything from scratch, from puppets of all sizes to over 90 original plays. Matrix Theatre Company uses the transformative power of theatre to change lives, build community and foster

social justice. It creates opportunities for children, youth, adults and elders, especially those in isolated or challenged communities, to become creators, producers and audiences of original theatre. For further information or to follow Matrix on Facebook, Twitter and Blogger, go to matrixtheatre.org.

Information:

Camps: From the Ground Up - Ages 8-11
Dates: July 6-9 and 12-16 (Matrix will be closed on Monday July 5. This camp will begin July 6)
Camp Hours: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Cost: $150
As part of Matrix’s Ghostwaters project, students in this camp will use theatre and puppetry to learn about the animals that inhabit the waters of their city. These young artists will explore acting on an introductory level, with emphasis on stage presence and character work. Additionally, they will learn the basics of puppet construction as they build hand and rod puppets, and prepare a performance for their last day of camp.

The Environment and Me - Ages 11-14
Dates: August 2-6
Camp Hours: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Cost: $100
Young artists will discover how their own personal choices and actions affect our environment. Students will develop a script through improvisation exercises that deals with realizing everyone's personal contribution to preserving our resources. Their original play will be presented August 6. 

Better World, Better Me - Ages 14-18
Dates: July 19-23, 24-25 (camping trip at Lael in Lapeer), 27-30
Camp Hours: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Cost: $125
Teen artists will have the chance to develop a new play based on a pressing environmental issue of their choice. Over the course of two weeks, they will have workshops in acting, poetry, dance and music, all of which will be used to develop an original piece of theatre. A field trip to an outdoor high/low ropes course encourages students to conquer fears and work together, while an intensive weekend trip to a camp will bring them into nature as they prepare for their performance on July 30. Participants will also perform their new play at the Detroit Zoo in August.

All camps held at Matrix Theatre Company, 2730 Bagley, Detroit, MI 48216. Students need to bring a lunch each day. Healthy snacks will be provided by Matrix. Scholarships are available. Call 313-967-0999 for more information. Discounts are available for families with more than one student attending the same camp. Childcare is not available before or after camp hours.

Ghost Waters: Matrix explores Detroit’s hidden waterways

Imagine downtown Detroit as a fertile paradise, as it existed long before industry came. Ghost Waters is Matrix Theatre Company’s three-year education, arts and awareness project which explores the ponds, marshes and rivers now hidden beneath downtown. Ghost Waters can be found where now sits Cobo Hall, Comerica Park and the Michigan Central Depot. What was lost in these places will be brought back to life through artistic stories, communal education activities, field trips, student showcases, workshops, street art and theatre pageants, all centered on water: its history, its present, and its role in the destiny of Detroit and Southeast Michigan. 

Ghost Waters’ next public event is the Water Fest, on Saturday, May 15, 2010 from 11am to 3pm outdoors at Matrix Theatre Company. Matrix is located at 2730 Bagley in Detroit’s Mexicantown. Performances, music, puppet workshops, food, and fun family activities will all focus on water consciousness. 

A ghost water is any body of water that was buried in the name of human progress. Many of Detroit’s waterways were used as sewers and eventually buried, but hidden rivers still flow beneath the city. The project examines Detroit’s water history, its current water problems and their impact on the future. Ghost Waters aims to serve as a vehicle to foster a renewed sense of place in Detroit’s ecosystems. The importance of recycling, water-consciousness, sustainability, and the right of every human being to have access to clean, running water are some of the topics Ghost Waters will connect to, artistically and through community engagement. 

Ghost Waters will bring the cause of water consciousness to the U.S. Social Forum, held in Detroit June 22-26, with a Procession of the Species Parade, art activities for youth, and the Savoyard Creek’s River Resurgence Pageant - where all are invited to participate in creating puppets that depict the hidden Savoyard Creek, still located below Congress Street. 

Thanks in part to funds received from The Erb Family Foundation, The Kresge Community Arts Foundation, and The Skillman Foundation, Ghost Waters continues through summer 2012. 

At its start in early 2010, Matrix School of Theatre students began incorporating recycled puppets, environmental themes and education about the forgotten waters into their work, which was featured in a showcase on World Water Day, March 22. An April field trip to Humbug Marsh gave participants a hands-on look at what Detroit’s ecosystems used to look like. 

“We are at a pivot point with young people in terms of envisioning a new future for the city. And without some deeper knowledge about what the city is beneath its mantel of industrialism we cannot make an appropriate choice. People see outdoors not as nature, but as a negative - as dirty and bad. This was once a hyper-rich and productive ecosystem, and now there are 40 square-miles of vacant land in the city, but people still have trouble seeing a future,” said Dr. Shaun Nethercott, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Matrix. 

Ghost Waters is a project that requires the creativity and commitment of the community to succeed. Anyone seeking to get involved in field trips, parades, puppet building projects or events should contact Matrix Theatre Company’s Volunteer Coordinator Ken Srdjak at ksrdjak@matrixtheatre.org or at 313-967-0999.

Matrix Theatre Company is a non-profit community-based theatre located in Southwest Detroit. Established in 1991, Matrix creates everything from scratch, from puppets of all sizes to over 90 original plays. Matrix Theatre Company uses the transformative power of theatre to change lives, build community and foster social justice. It creates opportunities for children, youth, adults and elders, especially those in isolated or challenged communities, to become creators, producers and audiences of original theatre. For further information or to follow Matrix on Facebook, Twitter and Blogger, go to matrixtheatre.org.

Spring semester starts today! It is not too late to sign up.

Spring semester classes run April 6 - May 15, 2010. Students will be continuing to engage in the Ghost Waters theme. It is not too late to sign up for classes. Call 313-967-0999 and as for Andrea. Check out our offerings below:

AGES 5-7

Performance 
Class: “Dance of The Water Cycle”
Instructor: Aisha Walker
Cost: $30*
Days/Times: Saturdays 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Location: Matrix Theatre Company
Our youngest actors will be preparing a dance performance for Matrix’s WaterFest on May 15. WaterFest will see all School of Theatre participants joining together to present a new play, and Now PLAYing students will expose young children to kinesthetic (movement) memory as they take part in this all-agency play.

Puppetry 
Class: “Water Banners”
Instructor: Megan Harris
Cost: $45*
Days/Times: Saturdays 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Location: Matrix Theatre Company
Young puppeteers will be creating banners and backdrops for the WaterFest play on May 15th. Students will have an opportunity to build on beginning construction skills, and their visual creations will bed featured on stage during WaterFest.

*Students who take both Dance of the Water Cycle and Water Banners classes are eligible for a reduced fee of $60.

AGES 8-11

Performance 
Class: “People and the Water”
Instructor: Aisha Walker
Cost: FRE (Thanks to a generous grant from the Youth Development Commission)
Days/Times: Tuesdays/Thursdays 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Location: Roberto Clemente Rec Center
Students in this class will be preparing an integral section of the play to be performed at May 15th’s WaterFest. Focus will be on stage presentation and scenework.

Puppetry
Class: “Water Animals”
Instructor: Megan Harris
Cost: $45
Days/Times: Saturdays 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Location: Matrix Theatre Company
Students will construct water animal puppets and learn to perform them in preparation for the May 15 WaterFest play.

AGES 11-14 

Mask-Making 
Class: “Water Sprite Masks”
Instructor: Jennifer Boyak
Cost: $45
Days/Times: Wednesdays 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Location: Matrix Theatre Company
Students will learn basic and intermediate skills in mask construction as they create masks for a Water Sprite dance to be performed at Matrix’s WaterFest.

Performance 
Class: “News From Waterville”
Instructor: Andrea Scobie
Cost: $60
Days/Times: Tuesdays/Thursdays 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Location: Matrix Theatre Company
Students in this class will be focusing on mastering acting skills for an encore performance of “News From Waterville,” which will be part of the all-agency play at WaterFest.

AGES 14-18

Performance, Mask-Making and Tech 
Class: “WaterFest Crew”
Instructor: Laura Perez
Cost: FREE (Thanks to a generous grant from the Skillman Foundation)
Days/Times: Fridays 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Location: Matrix Theatre Company
Teens will be doing some of everything as they form teams that will be integral to the production of the WaterFest play. They will learn performance, mask-making, and technical theatre skills, which will all be put to use in their role as actors and crew during WaterFest on May 15.

Ghost Waters project begins with World Water Day

Monday March 22, 2010, marked World Water Day, and an exceptional event put on by Matrix Theatre Company with support from the People’s Water Board and Detroit Evolution. Matrix and their allies brought World Water Day to life for the community of Southwest Detroit. The event served not only as the showcase for the Matrix School of Theatre's winter semester, but also the kickoff event of Ghost Waters, Matrix Theatre’s new three-year project about water consciousness and the hidden and buried rivers of Detroit.

The event was held at St. Anne’s Parish Hall, and brought together a diverse gathering of Southwest Detroit to rejoice in community building and the valuable resource that is our water.

Ghost Waters, which began in January 2010, is an eco-awareness and eco-education community arts program which will include field trips to various sites throughout the Detroit area, involvement in different social justice and community events, puppet-building and showcasing and street theatre performances. 

The event began with a showing of posters from the water awareness poster contest and an exceptionally delicious dinner provided Detroit Evolution's Corktown Community Kitchen, who help bring local, healthy food to the city of Detroit, Avalon Bread and the Matrix staff. The opening libations ceremony was performed by Charity Hicks of the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network, and set the uplifting and hopeful mood for the remainder of the evening. We had fantastic, beautiful performances from the Living on Stage and Playwriting Is… classes, as well as an excellent presentation and performance of the students’ new puppets, created for the Ghost Waters’ Water Stories performance. A water dance was then followed by a showcasing of the recycled puppets.

We also had a number of theatre performances, all focusing on water awareness and eco-education - a great beginning for Ghost Waters! Performances included Lesson Learned, The Water Cycle, and News from Waterville. In addition to these, Jen Boyak showcased the Spirit of the Water Masks, with performances of The Moon’s Power and Friends at the Beach written by Rosario De La Cruz-Martin.

Overall, the event was a fantastic success with amazing local food, beautiful art, exceptional performances. and a great hope for the state of water use and awareness in Detroit.

You can become involved with Ghost Waters by contacting Ken Srdjak at 313-967-0999 or ksrdjak@matrixtheatre.org. Come and be a part of the workshops, field trips and fetivals.

See more pictures of the event here.

This post was written by Jenn Vanaman, who is a student intern from University of Michigan School of Social Work.

Matrix shows off projects, thanks Matrix-family at annual meeting

Matrix’s 2010 Annual Meeting was a great opportunity to give thanks to all of the people who helped make Matrix possible in the 2008-2009 season. At the meeting the Matrix community came together to discuss where Matrix is now, and how far it has come.

The theatre was packed beyond capacity with funders, donors, partners, members of the Board of Directors, Matrix’s young artists, their families and the Matrix staff.

Once all the guests had arrived and mingled, the night began with a focus on the students and their accomplishments. Andrea Scobie’s Teatro de la Vida students started off with their original work, The Stronger They Are, The Badder They Rise, a performance piece that arose from the youth’s insights into songs by Michael Jackson and Kanye West.

Matrix’s Young Playwrights went next with a staged reading of two scenes from their upcoming world premiere of Vanished. Vanished will run weekends March 12^th through March 28^th at Matrix and deals with the issue of immigration in our border city. Check out the event on Facebook.

Matrix’s young artist Marisa de la Cruz Martin performed her imaginative and animated puppetry. Marisa received the Promising Puppeteer Award, which not only recognizes Marisa’s growth and talent with her puppets, but also acts as a full scholarship for Marisa to attend as many Matrix classes as she wants over the next year. It was the inaugural award in a scholarship program created for Matrix’s School of Theatre. The program’s goal is to provide support for families in need so that any child can attend the school’s performance, puppetry and mask-making classes. The initial award was made possible through a donation by Richard P. Baks, who was thanked from the stage by Shaun Nethercott, Matrix’s Co-Founder and Executive Director.

There was also special recognition of Board Member Jeanne Vogt, who will be retiring from the Board after six years. Jeanne was honored for the transformative leadership she has provided during her long commitment to Matrix.

The 2010-2011 season was also announced. The opening Heritage Play is Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams, followed by the annual holiday play Puppet Scrooge. For the Spring 2011 production two one-act plays are grouped together for “Comedy Tonight:” Para Siempre by Maria Serratos, an adaptation from Neil Simon’s Plaxa Suite, which is paired with Backstage Passes by local playwright Roger Kerson. The festival production in May 2011 is Ghost Waters: In Our Life, the second stage of Matrix’ three-year Ghost Waters project, funded by the Erb Family Foundation.

Shaun shared key details from the annual report, which showed growth across the board at Matrix. Since 1991 Matrix has staged 122 productions and created 90 original scripts. Its plays have been seen by 68,000 people. More than 13,000 people have worked with Matrix since its founding.

Service has seen dramatic increases this year. The School of Theatre held 957 sessions compared to last year’s 617, with 708 participants versus 432 in 2007-2008. In-school arts education programs reached 550 school students, more than double the 239 served the year before. Contact hours totaled 2243, up from 1576, and there were 535 youth sessions, compared to 351 last year. Matrix’s young artists performed for more than 2,000 at 25 locations.

The audience for Matrix Theatre’s productions was over 8,500, an increase of over 200 from the previous year.

Huge thanks are extended to Majestic Cafe and the Zaineas, Nethercott Enterprises, Saint Bonaventure Monastery, and On the Rise Bakery- The Capuchin Soup Kitchen for their wonderful donations.

Winter class schedule

PERFORMANCE AND PLAYWRITING:

Now PLAYing
Ages 5-7
Saturdays, 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Matrix Theatre Company
Begins Jan 23, 2010
In this introduction to being on stage, Matrix’s youngest actors will learn the basics of movement, stage voice, and characterization as they prepare a call-and-response performance for March 22’s World Water Day event.

Living on Stage
Ages 8-11
Tues/Thurs, 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Roberto Clemente Recreation Center
Begins Jan 26, 2010
Older children taking this class will have the opportunity to learn the beginning elements of playwriting. Through explorations of character, plot, setting, and theme, these young writers will adapt a story about water consciousness that will be performed on March 22 at the World Water Day event.

Playwriting Is…
Ages 11-14
Tues/Thurs, 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.

Begins Jan 26, 2010
Students in this class will begin to think about playwriting as a springboard to social change. Building on their playwriting experience from the last semester, these students will script an original piece about hidden waters of Detroit, and what water justice means to not only the animals that inhabit Detroit waters, but also to city residents as well. Their play will be performed at the World Water Day event on March 22.

PUPPETRY:

Water Stories Puppets
Ages 5-7
Saturdays, 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.n.
Matrix Theatre Company Studio
Begins Jan 23, 2010
Where is water from? Where does it go? What happens if we don’t take care of it? Our youngest puppeteers will begin to discover the answers to those questions as they read storybooks about water, and make puppets of the fish, turtles, and other creatures that live in water, as well as people puppets who will tell water stories at the World Water Day event on March 22.

Recycled Puppets

Ages 8-11
Saturday, 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Matrix Theatre Company Studio
Begins Jan 23, 2010
Puppet-makers in this class will be using Eco-Fi fabrics and recycled materials to create bottle, glove, rod, sock, and marionette puppets, while also learning about the value of re-using what we have, and the impact bottled water has on our ecosystem.

Spirit of the Water Masks
Ages 11-14
Wednesdays, 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Matrix Theatre Company Studio
Begins Jan 25, 2010
Young teens will tell their own personal stories connected with Michigan and Detroit waters (rivers, lakes, marshes, beaches) to create masks that embody their own connection to the eco-life around them.

Kids in Action

Thursday, December 10th was Matrix’s annual Winter Educational Showcase, which brings together all of the students in our performance, playwriting and puppetry classes to share with family and friends what they’ve learned during the term.

From the Education Manager’s point of view, the day is busy and hectic, but always a real joy. This year was no different. I was really looking forward to seeing the full performances from every class. And to make the event even more special, we were also including a performance by the Introduction to Puppetry class at O.W. Holmes Elementary. Usually our “site-based” classes have performances within their schools; it was so great this time around to have the Holmes kids right in the middle of things and to meet their families too.

The Showcase kicked off with a performance by our “Now PLAYing” group of 5-7 year-olds in Dr. Seuss’ “The Sneetches.” Then Miguel Diaz showed off his masks “Planet Flower” and “Lava Boy” and Marisa DeLaCruz-Martin put on a puppet show for us all.

The 8-11 year olds in “Being on Stage” gave a wonderful performance of “Where the Wild Things Are,” complete with their own homemade monster masks. Our youngest students came back to swim their bottle fish puppets in front of a backdrop they painted themselves, and the Holmes students put on their puppet show, “The Ghosts of O.W. Holmes.”

The final performance of the evening was from the 11-14-year-olds in our “Acting Is …” class, who wrote their own original script based on songs by Kanye West and Michael Jackson. Entitled “The Badder They Are, The Stronger They Rise,” this show featured two dance numbers (and a food fight).

The energy in the room that night was fabulous! All of the performances were fun to watch, and we gave out several Matrix Spirit Awards to some of our most hard-working participants.

Working with all of these students is a complete honor. They blow me away all the time with their talent and creativity, but at Showcase I was mainly impressed by their support of one another. Everyone was truly interested in watching everyone else’s piece; everyone’s reactions and applause were genuine. Afterward, I heard words of congratulations from student to student, and saw hugs and handshakes and high-fives between teachers and family members and kids. The community of creativity is strong at Matrix, and I can’t say thanks enough to all of the teachers and parents, and all of our young performers and puppet-makers and playwrights for being a part of it.

If you missed the showcase, you definitely missed out! Make sure to catch our Spring Showcase on March 22, which is also World Water Day, to see how young Matrix artists use theatre to bring awareness to water issues in Detroit.

Andrea Scobie is the Education Manager at Matrix Theatre Company. She can be reached at ascobie@matrixtheatre.org or at 313-967-0999.

More photos of our Autumn 2009 students.