For the past few months we’ve been working on an exciting project with theater teacher Alison Fleminger and a class of Liberty High School ESL students from Poland, Senegal, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, & Mexico!
The students wrote and performed 3 scenes for the stage incorporating original videos and dealing with barriers to communication. Engaging in the production process for both the stage and screen gave students the opportunity to think critically about how the 2 media communicate differently.
They performed “Speak Up!: Breaking the Barriers” at NYC’s legendary performance space, The Kitchen in front of an audience of 130 from their school and community. They did a fantastic job, they communicated fluently in both media, and the crowd went wild!
“Communication Without Fear, Skit 1” is a sample of the students’ video work. This video was incorporated into an infomercial-style scene about helping people who are having trouble communicating.
The Media Spot 