Teaching Philosophy

I have a varied teaching career.  I’ve taught in many different environments and on group and individual levels.  My students have a wide age range, diversity, and breadth of knowledge. I use many different techniques to engage students on their level of learning. I enjoy teaching and theatre.  My passion and experiences of the arts is one I hope to pass on to my students.

It's an important task to be a teacher.  One must accomplish many goals.  Giving knowledge and providing an understanding of subject matter, theory, and application, being there to help and challenge them, encouraging creative experimentation, and respecting and supporting a wide diversity of students and their needs with fairness. One must recognize each student's differences and grade them against themselves. 

 I intend to give my students the ability to translate their experiences into life-long, self-motivated learning,  A liberal arts education will compliment my diverse experiences and I’ll teach my students how theatre is connected to many different subjects.  Science and math, as well as the humanities, will give students a balanced education that will take them farther in the world.  It doesn’t matter where they go, they will have learned very important skills from my classes; collaboration, communication, a desire to keep learning outside the classroom, integrity, critical thinking, leadership, creative problem solving among others.

As a teacher, I aspire to help my students find the enthusiasm and experience which will further them in their careers.  I plan on doing this by instilling in them the same level of enthusiasm and love of theatre that I have.  I want them to come in with a smile and a desire to learn.  I know that not all students will react that way, but I will engage those students as well.  With transformational learning, I know I can take my students to the next phase in their lives.  I plan on doing this through the minutiae of the subject.  I want to relate to them and connect with them on a personal level.  By giving them the tools of knowledge, through lectures, reading, videos, guest speakers, evaluation and hands-on practice in a lab setting. I will reach their inner desire for learning which will carry them through their education and careers.

This year, I’ve taught Intro to Theatre and Intro to Make-up Design, I continue to learn about teaching from my students.  I enjoy watching my students grow and it pleases me to hear my language and see my techniques repeated back to me.  I’ve gotten to know my students’ strengths and weaknesses and I’ve helped them to try different things.  My students were excited to show me something new.  Their passion for make-up and theatre influenced the other students and started a bit of friendly competition.  This evidenced the effect of my philosophies on my students, thereby showing the successful results of my labor.

Design Philosophy

What is design?  I feel that design conveys an emotion, an idea; it inspires and instills passion.  I want my designs to communicate, whether it’s mine or the director’s concept.  An audience member will get a clue about the play, character, or objectives.  What is fueling the play?  In my costume designs, I like to use color and silhouette to convey ideas of character, like socio-economic status, education, gender, and as well, time-period, or the psychological center of a character.   My designs need to follow form follows function; the costumes must be usable and designed to aid the actor in their discoveries.  I always enjoy when an actor relates to their clothes.  They will get a huge grin on their face.  It’s very satisfying to find that connection.  I look at a play and find its emotional center. A show palette is chosen with the input of the design team.  I like to use color as my number one communicator.  Next, I look at silhouette.  That determines the time.  This influences the line and cut of a costume.  I look to add layers, whether it’s jewelry, a hat, scarf, or vest.  This is great for characters revealing themselves or for the actors to have good business.  Texture is a wonderful addition to any costume; the choice of fabric says a lot about character.  A satin compared to a tweed gives me knowledge about the character, sexy or stuffy?  I create the final look with consideration of what the director wants, what the character needs, what the audience will feel all within the means of the budget.  I find that I’m equally comfortable with little budget as I am with a much larger budget.