Exploring Viola Spolin's Vision of a Non-Authoritarian Philosophy of Education: A Symposium at DePaul Art Museum on May 23rd
The Learning Studio in Collaboration with the Stockyard Institute & DPAM present:
Exploring Viola Spolin's Vision of a Non-Authoritarian Philosophy of Education: A Symposium with Aretha Sills
“Experiencing is penetration into the environment, total organic involvement with it. This means involvement on all levels: intellectual, physical, and intuitive. Of the three, the intuitive, most vital to the learning situation, is neglected.” - Viola Spolin, Improvisation for the Theater.
Join us for a presentation, dialogue, and Q&A exploring the origins and implications of Improvisation as a philosophy and practice for experiential learning through the life and legacy of the mother of American improvisational theater, Viola Spolin. A Chicago-born group worker and theater director, Spolin was the originator of theater games and author of Improvisation for the Theater (Northwestern University Press, 1963). She is widely credited with igniting the spark of the improvisational theater movement in the United States.
About the discussant:
Aretha Sills, executive director of Sills/Spolin Theater Works, teaches Viola Spolin’s theater games to actors, improvisers, writers, educators, and everyone. She is the granddaughter of Viola Spolin and daughter of Paul Sills (founding director The Second City in Chicago and creator of Story Theater). She has researched the history and development of Viola Spolin's philosophy and methodology of Improvisation which arose from her early training with Neva Boyd at and around Jane Addams’s Hull-House Social Settlement in Chicago and gives talk on how improvisational theater in the U.S. emerged from Progressive-era social activism via the work of Neva Boyd, Viola Spolin, and Paul Sills. In addition to working with theater artists, Aretha has worked extensively with educators throughout her career. She has trained faculty from Northwestern, DePaul, Columbia College, The Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science, LAUSD, CETA, and many other institutions and schools. She created and directs an improvised show currently touring Los Angeles public elementary schools. More information about Viola Spolin, workshops, and contact information for Aretha can be found at www.violaspolin.org
Date: 05/23/2024 (Thu.)
Time: 7:00pm - 8:30pm EDT
Location: DePaul Art Museum
935 W Fullerton Ave, Chicago, IL 60614
Created by:
Learning Studio
Register for this free event here.