Media and Newsroom
Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts Heads to Hong Kong to Deliver Arts Education Professional Development Workshops
Melissa Chotiner, Director Public Relations, (703) 255-4096, melissac@wolftrap.org
Vienna, VA —The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts is partnering with Arts with the Disabled Association Hong Kong (ADAHK) to bring its internationally acclaimed education programs to teachers and staff in Hong Kong. ADAHK, a non-government organization, works with various stakeholders to ensure that people with disabilities have equal opportunities to access, participate and enjoy the arts. In the first week of April, Wolf Trap’s Senior Director of Education and Wolf Trap Teaching Artists will deliver professional development workshops in two Hong Kong locations, demonstrating how to infuse arts into learning opportunities for people with special needs. Program participants will learn about new techniques and tools to enhance education through music, movement, puppetry and storytelling.
This is the first time Wolf Trap will provide educational programming and services in Hong Kong, working in translation with Chinese professionals. The workshops will be presented by Wolf Trap Master Teaching Artists Kathleen Lynam and Sue Trainor, who have both devoted many years to making the arts accessible to children and families of diverse backgrounds and abilities. Ms. Lynam is a teaching artist with the Nashville Wolf Trap Regional Program and specializes in puppetry to promote literacy. Ms. Trainor is a singer-songwriter with a gift for stirring-up enthusiasm and creativity.
During the workshops, participants will learn new ways to engage people with special needs by creating and animating their own hand puppets, and using songs, chanting, steady beat and creative storytelling as part of their daily classroom activities and lessons.
“The Arts with the Disabled Association Hong Kong (ADAHK) is keen to introduce different methodologies or art forms to Hong Kong to achieve the vision “Arts for Everyone,””said Janet Tam, executive director of ADAHK. “We have long heard about the Wolf Trap Institute and their internationally respected programs. By inviting Wolf Trap’s experienced Master Teaching Artists to Hong Kong, I hope local practitioners can acquire new skills and gain insights from the Masters, and can better serve the diverse needs of the communities, towards our vision and an inclusive society through the arts.”
Wolf Trap Education and its regional partners serve more than 75,000 children, parents, and teachers across the country each year. Leveraging the power of the arts, Wolf Trap’s education programs and services have helped to enhance learning across cultures, distances and ability levels for many years. Wolf Trap has delivered arts education programs to many countries around the world including, Brazil, Greece, the United Kingdom, Italy and Australia.
“We look forward to working with our colleagues at ADAHK to share Wolf Trap’s arts education expertise,” said Miriam Flaherty Willis, Senior Director of Education at Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. “The cultural insights and experiences that are exchanged during these workshops are invaluable for everyone involved, and we are very pleased for the opportunity to work with these teachers and artists.”
The Wolf Trap Institute’s arts education instruction and professional development for early childhood education have been evaluated and proven highly effective by several highly respected organizations in the field. Past project evaluations have been conducted by Project Zero-Harvard Graduate School of Education, 1991-95; Education Development Center, Inc. 1999; A. Yaffe, Ph. D. and D. Yaffe, 2000; Social Dynamics LLC, 2006; and D. Chase, Ph. D., 2007. In addition the Institute has received support from the Head Start Bureau, U.S. Department of Education, the Department of Commerce/Technology Opportunity Project, and the National Endowmnent for the Arts.
About The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded by Catherine Filene Shouse (1896-1994), produces and presents a full range of performance and education programs in the Greater Washington area, as well as nationally and internationally. Wolf Trap features three performance venues, the outdoor Filene Center and Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, both located at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, and The Barns at Wolf Trap, located down the road from the park and adjacent to the Center for Education at Wolf Trap. In partnership with the National Park Service, The 7,028-seat Filene Center annually showcases an extensive list of diverse artists, ranging from pop, country, folk, and blues to classical music, dance, and theater, as well as multimedia presentations from May through September. The Barns operates year round, and during the summer months is home to the Grammy-nominated Wolf Trap Opera Company, one of America’s outstanding resident ensemble programs for young opera singers. Wolf Trap’s education programs include the nationally acclaimed Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, a diverse array of arts education classes, scholarships, and a nationally recognized internship program that was included in Bloomberg BusinessWeek’s 2009 List of “Best Places to Intern.” As part of its ongoing commitment to protect and preserve the environment, Wolf Trap offers metro access and is a founding member of the Green Music Group. Terrence D. Jones is president and CEO of the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts.
Visit the Wolf Trap Web site at www.wolftrap.org for more information.
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