About Opening Act Opening Act is an innovative nonprofit that creates high quality , cost effective and sustainable arts programming for NYC's most underserved teens . Our medium is theater, but our results go beyond the stage; we produce young people who are confident in their talents and power to accomplish whatever they set out to , who value community and commitment , and who are energized leaders within their schools. Our History Opening Act was founded in 2000 out of a clear need for more empowering experiences in NYC's underserved public schools. Its founders were actors and educators who knew NYC public school students had too few opportunities to find a sense of self worth. They believed they could offer students that sense through the medium they loved the most: the theater. We designed a program based on professionalism, high expectations, constant growth and fun. Our pilot program at Clara Barton High School in 2000-2001 was a great success and Opening Act quickly expanded to be at three to five schools a year. In four years now Opening Act has completed 24 semester long programs at seven NYC high schools, serving hundreds of students. How We Are Unique LONG TERM Opening Act believes that tremendous value comes when students can participate in an ongoing artistic space. More than getting a taste of the arts – we want our students to have the opportunity to dive in. The continuity of our program impacts the entire school community which knows their school participates in something special. CONSISTENT HIGH LEVEL OF INSTRUCTION To ensure that our teaching artists have the mastery and leadership skills they need to guarantee a successful program, we select only the highest quality teaching artists and provide long term rigorous training to each one. GOING WHERE THERE IS A NEED We reach out to schools where there is little to no theater and many at-risk students. And we stay only as long as we are needed; when teachers we collaborate with feel strong enough to lead a program on their own, we move on – to the next school where students don't have a stage – but continue to offer support to schools that “graduate” from Opening Act as they need it. HIGHLY COST EFFECTIVE and FREE We invest our resources into excellent instruction and not much else, making our programs professional and highly cost effective. We offer our programs free to partnering schools, letting us guarantee we are there for our students, regardless of fluctuating budgets. The Need The benefit and need for extra-curricular and arts programming for students, particularly at-risk students, is well known. According to the U.S. Department of Education, students who attend high quality after school programs fair better in school, relate better to peers and have lower incidences of drug use, violence and pregnancy (21st Century Community Learning Centers . US Department of Education. September 2000 ). The benefit to our students is unmistakable: our students complete our programs knowing that they can succeed at anything they want in life. Their success necessarily ripples to the world around them, creating empowering connections with their families and pride among their school communities. In New York City where only one in two high school students graduate in four years and nearly a third of students “drop out” or are “pushed out,” the need for programs that empower students is great. Sadly, it is the city's worst performing schools that have the greatest shortage of extra-curricular programming. The budgetary pressures exist for all NYC public schools; when the state and city are forced to cut back in education spending, extra-curricular and arts programming are the first to be cut. This year's budget cuts are unique—a combination of continued shortages from Albany, city funds directed toward No Child Left Behind compliance and the development of smaller high schools—but they share the same impact on arts and enrichment programming as past cycles of cuts. There are many organizations who work to provide after school programming for NYC's public schools, but few who offer the unique combination of qualities Opening Act provides. According to the Department of Education, of the 56 theater arts education organizations that worked with the DOE in 2001, 15 reported offering after school programming at the schools. Only 7 of those 15 were reportedly long term, and of those only 1 offered their programming free. Each year Opening Act outreaches to thirty schools that serve the city's most at-risk students; with no greater outreach than a single letter, there are always more schools who request our programs than we can serve. Opening Act is out to fill that gap. Opening Act will continue to reach out to NYC's most underserved public high schools. Who We Are Julia Kamin, Founder and Director of Opening Act Julia Kamin has a life-time commitment to public education. She previously taught high school and worked for Advocates for Children of New York for eight years as an advocate, education specialist and program director, before founding Opening Act in 2000. Ms. Kamin is also the founder and director of CitizenJoe.org, a policy awareness and citizen empowerment website.Suzy Myers, Creative and Development Director Suzy Myers has worked as a teaching artist in New York City for the past five years, including work with Opening Act last year at Walton High School in the Bronx . An actress and arts advocate, Ms. Myers received her BFA in drama from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, where she also minored in Applied Theatre. Her work includes developing acting, movement, and interdisciplinary arts curriculum at East Side Community High School , Jane Addams Vocational High School , Walton High School and the Missouri Fine Arts Academy . Teaching Artists Heather Acs, Clara Barton Heather is incredibly excited to begin her first year with Opening Act, where she will be teaching at Clara Barton High School in Brooklyn . Heather graduated from Marymount Manhattan College in New York City with a degree in Theatre Arts, concentration in Acting. Over the last four years, she has worked as a teaching artist with young people around the country, facilitating classes and projects that focus on acting, improvisation, movement, maskmaking, writing, directing, solo performance, and ensemble work. As an artist, Heather writes and performs her own material in both solo and ensemble multimedia pieces. She believes theatre and the arts are essential tools in the education, expression, and empowerment of young people.Megan Cramer, Lafayette After graduating from Wake Forest University in 1999 with a degree in Theatre, Megan has been pursuing a career in acting and teaching. Her acting career has led her to numerous classical, original, and musical productions in both Atlanta , GA , and New York City . Her teaching and directing credits include founding a drama club in Atlanta , directing children's plays at St. Bart's Episcopal church, and working extensively with the 52nd Street Project, where she helps kids write and perform their own plays. Toby Lawless , Walton and Automotive Toby began acting in community and professional venues in Seattle , Washington when he was 12 years old. In high school he helped create a competitive improvisational comedy team that went on to win the regional championship for three consecutive years. At Middlebury College in Vermont Toby was the co-head of the Otter Nonsense Improvisational Theatre players where he developed and taught numerous Masters Classes on Improvisational theatre. Since graduating he has had the honor of being a Guest Artist in Residency at The Addison Repertory Theatre where he produced the improvised show “Spin†.Dani Snyder, Clara Barton Dani Snyder is a director and teacher, currently working on her masters' degree in Educational Theater at NYU. A resident of the East Village, Dani's professional theater work has taken her to as diverse locations as the HERE Arts Center to Prague, Czech Republic, directing productions including an interactive adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing, Maria Irene Fornes' Molly's Dream, Monster (an adaptation of Theseus and the Minotaur), Jesus Christ Superstar, and many new plays . . She has taught at Boston College , UMASS Lowell, Middlesex Community College (on fellowship from Merrimack Repertory Theater), Walnut Hill School for the Arts, and the Upham's Corner Charter School . Board of Directors Julia Kamin, President: founder and Director of Opening Act, Inc. Elisa Hyman, Secretary: Deputy Director of Advocates for Children of New York, Inc. Charles Hull: founder and retired Co-Director of TheaterWorks USA . Alexandra Kamin: project manager, SMI Construction Management, Inc. Jessica Lapenn: Advisor, Political Affairs, U.S. Mission to the U.N. Sonia Mendez-Castro: disability rights attorney, Skyer, Mendez-Castro, Foley. Jennifer Morello: Coordinator of Corporate Relations, Children's Health Fund. Suzy Myers, Creative and Development Director: teaching artist, actress. Jennifer Olsson, Vice President, Carnegie, Inc. Stephanie Rappoport: real estate professional and leader in non-profit community including Junior League, Seeds for Peace, and MOMA. |
Contact Us For more information about Opening Act, please email us at: info@openingactnewyork.org or write us at: Opening Act, Inc. |
