Scenic City Shakespeare Receives Arts Education Community Learning Grant From TN Arts Commission

Scenic City Shakespeare has introduced "Billie the Bard's Puppet Playhouse" funded by the TN Arts Commission. This new educational puppetry program will have 10 initial performances at the Avondale branch of the Chattanooga Public Library beginning spring 2023.

Puppet design and construction is under way. These pilot performances will be FREE to the public and available online. Visit www.sceniccityshakespeare.org for more information and scheduling inquiries.

Bard's Puppet Playhouse follows a group of puppet kids in drama club as they navigate social emotional topics and work together to perform scenes from Shakespeare's text led by their friend Billie the Bard, the human storyteller representing William Shakespeare. With coaching from Scenic City Shakespeare Puppeteer Teaching Artists, young learners in the audience will have hands-on opportunities to learn basic puppetry skills and be featured in scenes.

Erica Richardson, Founder of Culture Books and Library Supervisor of the Avondale Branch of the Chattanooga Public Library, will originate the role of Billie the Bard and assist with script and lesson planning. A former Elementary School teacher, you might recognize Erica from weekly online readings and author interviews. Check out Culture Books online for more on their mission and upcoming events at www.culturebookscha.org.

Brenda Schwab leads puppet design and construction. Brenda's work can be seen at the Creative Discovery Museum's Bee Exhibit and on stage all over Chattanooga. She has served as the Costumer for Chattanooga State Community College for nearly two decades and has costumed countless productions across the country. She is an experienced puppet builder, having designed and performed with colleagues of Jim Henson. A talented and knowledgeable performer and educator in her own right, Brenda will also consult on scripts and lesson content.

The program was developed by Emma Collins, Scenic City Shakespeare Cofounder/Education Director, who was introduced to educational puppetry through her work at the beloved nonprofit Kids on the Block. Until closing in 2019, Chattanooga's Kids on the Block took touring puppet shows to schools and covered a range of topics from safety and hygiene to sensitive subjects like bereavement and gun violence. Emma is a Wolf Trap Teaching Artist with the Arts Based Collaborative at UTC, leading arts integration professional development residencies for early education teachers and students. Since 2020, she has led monthly meetup groups for Shakespeare readers online and in person on Floor Five at the Edney Innovation Center.

Scripts by Emma Collins as lesson plans were developed with Scott Lee, PHD, host of The Thoughtful Teacher Podcast, and Scenic City Shakespeare Board Chair. For more information and to inquire about performances, Puppeteer Teaching Artist applications, or sponsorship opportunities, visit www.sceniccityshakespeare.org.

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