Company of Fools to Bring STAGES OF WONDER to Schools Across Blaine County

Over the past 17 years, Company of Fools has shared the Blaine County School District's goal of creating a world class, student focused community of teaching and learning through its arts-in-education programming. 2013 marks the 16th year of Stages of Wonder - Company of Fools' in-school dramatic arts program that serves as the theatre curriculum in - elementary schools across Blaine County.

Company of Fools created Stages of Wonder in 1998 to engage children in individual and collective creativity through the medium of the theatre. This innovative in-school program seeks to address the absence of an ongoing theatre experience in the elementary schools by introducing theatre as an essential component in the development of the whole child. To date, this program has served more than 22,000 students.

The program encourages elementary school-age children (grades one through five) to explore creativity expressed through the theatrical arts. For many students, Stages of Wonder is their first contact with the dramatic arts. Facilitated by specially-trained Company of Fools artists, Stages of Wonder brings together storytelling, role-playing, theatre games and exercises designed specifically for each grade level. These activities are both structured and improvisational, allowing children the opportunity to create in their own personal way without the worry of getting it "right" or "wrong."

Stages of Wonder also creates an equal playing field for all children, regardless of their personality or background. Any potential barriers observed by facilitators-such as language, self-judgment, shyness or lack of self-esteem-are addressed and dismantled. The environment of physical and emotional safety provided by Stages of Wonder allows students to experience and celebrate the success of their own, unique creativity.

Stages of Wonder currently operates in four public elementary schools across the Blaine County School District. Over the past several years, Company of Fools has also brought the program to child-focused non-profit organizations including Sun Valley Adaptive Sports, Y-On-Wheels, YAK!, the Magic Valley Boys and Girls Club and Camp Rainbow Gold. These special partnerships have enabled Company of Fools to impact groups of children with different and specific needs.

Perhaps the best indicator of Stages of Wonder's effectiveness is the positive feedback we routinely receive from teachers:

As a first grade teacher, I witnessed an amazing transformation in a few of my more reserved students and watched them blossom as they took risks in expressing themselves through drama. - Char Roth, Hemingway Elementary School

I am a teacher at Woodside Elementary and I love Stages of Wonder. I have experienced this program for the past 13 years and each year my students have enjoyed it immensely. My students, who are in a dual-immersion program, find Stages of Wonder fun and magical - even my shy ones! The program builds self-esteem, creative exploration with sound and movement, working as one and all in a non-threatening way enabling everyone to feel safe to participate. One of joys I have also discovered is that when I take my students to the Liberty Theatre to see a Company of Fools student matinee they remember Stages of Wonder. Over the years I have watched them grow into very respectful theatre goers. I believe that one of the direct benefits of Stages of Wonder and the student matinees is the cultivation of future arts lovers. - Kathy Oliver, Woodside Elementary

In January, Company of Fools merged with the Sun Valley Center for the Arts-an organization that shares Company of Fools' commitment to offering students meaningful exposure to and involvement with the arts. Both organizations have enjoyed a fruitful, longstanding relationship with the Blaine County School District, and through the merger will continue to provide exceptional programs in schools across the Wood River Valley.

The Center and Company of Fools currently offer the following arts-in-education programs:

· Artist Residencies that include nationally known musicians and visual artists

· Student matinees of Company of Fools' productions at the Liberty Theatre

· Student Scholarships for advanced study in the arts. To date, The Center has awarded over half a million dollars in student scholarships.

· All school performances by visiting musicians in local schools

· School Tours of exhibitions at The Center's gallery

· Teen Workshops, Family Days, Teen Theatre Classes

· Educator Nights at Company of Fools' productions

For more information, visit www.companyoffools.org.

Pictured: Denise Simone and students. Photo Credit: Kirsten Shultz.

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