#she and i are the two pinnacles of our grad program and
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
dreadfutures · 8 months ago
Text
🥺❤️ to old friends renewed
8 notes · View notes
zentloper-xmas · 2 years ago
Photo
Tumblr media
Merry Christmas, all!
It’s time for another year’s wrap-up. Already? Already! Let’s start with old news and work forward. Technically, I proposed to Neil November of last year in 2017, but we were on a camping trip in the woods (Pinnacles National Park) all alone in the wilderness, so word has gotten out more or less gradually. Folks keep asking us “When’s the wedding?”; I’ll let you know when we know, haha. Our finances are pretty tied up in future plans, and the wedding is one of them.
To that end, the two of us were quite agreeable to temporarily moving into Neil’s folks’ place in Santa Clara in early May of this year. They recently acquired their new retirement home up in Rohnert Park in anticipation of eventual retirement, and thus have been staying partially there and partially here, and while they’re away we take care of the place. We both really appreciate the lower cost of living and the room to spread out a little. (Julie jokes I own more stuff than they do... and maybe she’s right; I’ve always been a pack rat. Thanks, Dad.)
David and Julie also recently celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary in September with a delightful frolic (they’re big into the Contra dance scene in the Bay), which also gave us the chance to visit with his sister and brother-in-law, Martha and Chase, who came for the occasion. Matt and Val (Neil’s uncle and aunt) visited us for a Thanksgiving banquet with his grandmother Jane, and Ruth (Neil’s other aunt) shortly thereafter for Hanukkah. We also had a nostalgic trip to Wente Scout Reservation with my parents over Labor Day Weekend, enjoying kayaking, sailing, and even stand-up paddle boarding on the lake. So it’s been a good year for seeing family, which is always nice. Another memorable event that allowed us all to gather was my brother’s wedding to his fiancée Shawna in June, at a gorgeous garden venue in San Andreas. Since then they’ve moved up north to Washington state, where some of the rest of my extended family resides. The distance makes me miss them, but technology (texts, apps, and social media) at least keeps us “close.” =)
Speaking of, I convinced Neil to finally get a iPhone. His old one wasn’t cutting it on the job; since he assumed “Acting Manager” at his Schwan’s depot, he’s been handling a lot more calls and general communications among staff. It’s a lot to handle, but I know he’s doing a stellar job and I’m super proud of him. With any luck they’ll give him the promotion he deserves! Meanwhile my ex, Mike, managed to score himself a gig at none other than the mighty Facebook! Wow! He and I like to keep in touch and hang out from time to time, including attending D&D games with our pals. I recently changed jobs myself, I’m now a Student Assistant at the Global Leadership Advancement Center at SJSU. Just part-time administrative/clerical work for while I’m still in grad school. We’re in the midst of finals right now (and I can’t wait to put Finance behind me, lemme tell you!), but then I’ll officially be halfway through the program. I’m set to graduate May 2020.
I’ve also still been indulging my creative side. In April I took a weekend-long pinstriping course— you know, those nifty multi- colored intertwining lines you see on classic cars and hot rods? I bought a lot of brushes and paint to continue practicing at home (you should see the old family van), and I even attended a convention where I got to sell some knick-knacks I’d “striped.” And in November I took a class on Mosaics. If you want to check out some of my work, you can visit this URL: https:// bayareapinstriper.tumblr.com
Sorry, not sorry, for the shameless plug. LOL. Hope everyone is well this holiday season!
-Rick and Neil
0 notes
recessknot2 · 5 years ago
Text
Mentoring.
Executive Function Coach.
Content
What Does A Business Coach Do?
Instructors Assist Establish Goals As Well As Hold Magnate Answerable.
More Keeping Reading Self Self-Confidence Structure.
Final Thoughts On Being A Certain Woman.
Vinyasa + Weight Training: Tips From New York Giants' Coach Gwen Lawrence.
Ipec Mentoring.
It's a site where reporters can publish requests for individuals to speak with on actually every little thing that reporters ever before blog about. You would certainly be surprised at the amount of people, also famous people, will certainly consent to let you interview them. Especially if they have a book being published or an item introducing. To begin with, there will not be a line of people waiting to hear your pearls of wisdom, so you end up being the interviewer and also begin a podcast. And likewise, they are more probable to bear in mind you when they are speaking with somebody else who might gain from your skills.
youtube
You control what you need aid with, yet let them aid you arrive. Whatever the reason, working with a blogging coach or a side rush coach is a perfectly suitable final thought ahead to. There are many reasons that you may want a blogging coach.
Programmes are mostly common as well as not customized to specific requirements. Delegates usually have to complete conventional components, so there is little room for tailoring the programme to represent existing expertise, skills or choices. Wholesale transfer of new abilities, e.g. modification in treatments, brand-new systems (e.g. software program application training), brand-new task function. Take care of the partnership to make sure the client receives the suitable degree of service which programmes are neither too brief, nor as well long. Urge a dedication to action as well as the advancement of lasting individual growth & adjustment.
Tumblr media
business coach "/>
What Does A Business Coach Do?
Join companies or graduates as they have the career-related discussions you require to listen to now. The ICAEW is finding the next generation of magnate. Ask inquiries of partners, students and employers about a profession in city law.
Tumblr media
Instructors Aid Establish Goals And Hold Business Leaders Responsible.
The top 300 graduate companies total and also the leading companies across 19 various job industries. Our A to Z of top graduate employers on site with recommendations on investigating occupation possibilities and also using. You will certainly likewise obtain a lot clearness while paying attention to the guidance Allison provides to the various other participants. These calls are very effective and also results-oriented.
Tumblr media
Allison has actually built 10 successful business over the last 3 years. Please submit the form listed below so you can schedule a visit to speak to one of our business specialists.
What can I get out of coaching?
Here are a couple of ways a coachee can make the most out of a coaching session. 1. Identify your goal(s) and/or area of focus. The most important thing is to have a focus area and set goals to work toward with your coach. 2. Keep a journal. 3. Be open. 4. Be prepared to be challenged. life coach vs therapist reviews . Expect change.
N.B. The term expert coach is typically utilized when the coach is outside to the organisation and also for that reason providing solutions on an 'outside' or 'consultancy' basis. Extremely reliable when made use of as a means of supporting training campaigns to make sure that crucial skills are moved to the 'live' atmosphere. Can concentrate on interpersonal abilities, which can not be conveniently or efficiently transferred in a standard training setting. Explore personal problems as well as problems via conversation in order to boost understanding or establish better self-awareness. Not constantly sufficiently comparable to the 'live' workplace to make certain reliable skills transfer.
Is life coaching a pyramid scheme?
Yes, Life Coaching is a ponzi/pyramid scheme.
Pinnacle Gold Bi-Weekly Small Group Mastermind Phone Calls... with your Pinnacle Gold Advanced Peers in the Peak Program. These continual solution-oriented bi-weekly calls are the crux of this program. They offer extraordinary value, continuous accountability as well as critical assistance towards your objectives. extraordinary coaching courses is facilitated and also supported by one of our AMI Professional Organization Coaches.
More Reading On Self Confidence Building.
HubSpot utilizes the information you give to us to call you concerning our relevant material, items, and also solutions. You may unsubscribe from these communications at any moment. Tim Ferris is an entrepreneur, speaker, capitalist and also author. His books cover topics such as finding out anything and also tools for success, and 5 have actually been New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers. He likewise holds the Tim Ferriss Program podcast, which flaunts over 400 million downloads.
Assist in the exploration of needs, inspirations, desires, abilities and also believed processes to assist the individual in materializing, long lasting adjustment. Featured Coach - Peter Hillside, CFM Consulting He has an online reputation for "getting things done through individuals" and also his decision, drive and feeling of humour enable results to be delivered in a manner that lots of teams delight in. TAB on a regular basis carries out PULSE Surveys on business subjects and also issues. Have a look at our study on Organization Training for more information about exactly how a relied on consultant could assist you raise your company influence.
How much is Tony Robbins life coach?
Robbins Coaching Fees range from about $3,000.00 to over $7,200.00 for 6 months or 18 sessions, or from to $6,000.00 to over $14,500.00 for 12 months or 36 sessions, depending upon a host of different unknown factors.
Allison brings in the best of the most effective in all sectors to make certain you are on the reducing side of what will develop your development in business world. With this 5-video training series, you'll uncover how to increase your revenues and fast-track your success. Wish to employ Allison and her group to expand your business? If you wish to believe like an executive would, occasionally you need their input and also assistance. I'll end the blogging coach area by restating the value of locating a blogging coach that has actually done what you wish to do as well as has actually located a replicable formula, strategy, or system for it.
What questions does a life coach ask?
Here are 10 of my All-time Best Coaching Questions!What would you like to have achieved by the end of this session? What's MISSING in your life right now? If you could change just ONE thing right now, what would it be? How SPECIFICALLY will you know you've completed that action/goal? More items•
I have guest articles from 10 years ago or more that are still being found by people who would not have always found me otherwise. I would say guest publishing has brought me in over $100k in business. In this way, people that assume you're terrific,-- which I make sure you are-- don't need to mess concerning utilizing Quora to call you. Quora overcomes 75 million mainly check outs and as you can envision individuals are asking and addressing questions on every possible topic. You have to watch for the emails that are sent out three times per day and after that you must send in a pitch explaining why you are the individual the press reporter needs to talk to.
Final Thoughts On Being A Confident Lady.
SkillsActive, the field skills council for active recreation, knowing and also well-being, has valuable information concerning requirements and certifications in this field. There are paths in for both university grads and college leavers, with a range of apprenticeships offered.
Vinyasa + Weight Lifting: Tips From New York Giants' Coach Gwen Lawrence.
She supplied huge value and also because of this I hired her and so did 6 other people. Her talk was nothing greater than half an hour describing some element of represent local business.
If an organisation is tired, inadequate or individuals are lacking in a particular ability or knowledge in order to become aware the collective vision, then coaching leaders can be the service. This design of management can inspire and help others to create their abilities, come to be stronger and also work together much more efficiently.
Tumblr media
Ipec Training.
They need to have a great deal of persistence and also not everybody is fit to be a blogging coach. Because for them, they do not intend to have actually spent all that time for absolutely nothing. service monitoring publications will certainly save you cash in the future-- plus, you won't be beholden to someone else for understanding transfer.
By instructing on your own how to boost your company, you'll enhance the probability of finding approaches that benefit you particularly, and you'll conserve yourself a tiny lot of money in the process. It all boils down to your demands, and what you wish to leave the relationship. He or she can additionally act as an unbiased judge for your suggestions and also can help you diagnose concerns within your organization if and also when they emerge. In contrast to common belief, therapy is not 'backwards focused' and also does not adjust to the stereotype of investing two decades going to once a week sessions to go over youth experiences. SeeA Guide to Psychology and its Method for a much more sensible & modern-day view of what scientific psychology and also the therapies have to offer.
Consequently, the demand for relationship mentoring has climbed tremendously over the last decade.
Own that you fucked up, very own that you gave it a go out of the incorrect vibration, not to get all ZEN, however identify just how you require to move that power or you will likely repeat this in your next endeavor in some way.
( We in fact have numerous articles regarding just how outstanding coaching is.) But this is an information point to consider and a story to highlight.
The anxiety of job combined with economic fears imply young couples have less time for each and every various other and this heavily impacts upon their home life and also consequently triggers strain in a relationship.
I am forecasted to graduate with my BSN in the fall of 2018.
Reputable credentialing companies, such as the International Coach Federation, review programs based upon certain requirements of values and proficiency.
One review of research studies found that health and health training showed guarantee for improving self-efficacy and self-empowerment.
As I've claimed before, you truly require to ensure you select the blogging coach that fits you. As a coach, I like beginning with a one-hour session since you get to vibe with the coach prior to going all-in. The vital point is to select a coach that can assist you accomplish what you desire.
What are the basic principles of coaching?
Below is a list of principles that can be effectively used for coaching success.The Coaching Spirit. Relationship and Trust. Asking Questions and Curiosity. Listening and Intuition. Feedback and Awareness. Suggestions and Simplification. Goals and Action Plans. Accountability and Accomplishments.
On the other hand, I know someone that gave a talk to her Chamber of Commerce as well as generated $100k of organization. I went to 4 or 5 Chamber of Business rate networking events when I initially relocated to the United States from the UK in 2006 and realized they were a waste of time. It was rarely unusual when you take into consideration that an excellent percentage of people who visit collections do so due to the fact that they do not have the cash to purchase books or spend for net accessibility. You'll unquestionably offer talks that create little interest as well as others where the organizers greatly overstated the amount of people would certainly exist. your suitable client isn't reading social media sites and also asking yourself why it's taking you as long to obtain your Facebook group up as well as running.
0 notes
zipgrowth · 6 years ago
Text
Teachable Moments: Reaching Students Through Technology
It’s easy to think of the ways that technology can make humans feel alienated or alone: less in-person interaction, or feelings of FOMO—that’s the Fear of Missing Out—from social media. But technology has also brought people—and teachers and students—together in new ways that have inspired learning.
In this episode of the EdSurge On Air podcast, we hear from four educators who share how technology tools engage their students and expanded their classrooms, whether that’s connecting with students around the world or learning a new language through technology and how that can spark community.
This is the third episode of a four part series about why teachers teach called “Teachable Moments.” (Here’s part one and two.) In this series, we'll hear directly from educators who attended the EdSurge Fusion conference last fall about the challenges they face, and what brings them joy in teaching.
Listen below, or subscribe to the EdSurge On Air podcast on your favorite podcast app like iTunes or Spotify. Highlights from the conversation below have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
First up is Mimi Kasner, principal at Francis Scott Key Elementary School in San Francisco. She tells us the ways her own learning and life experiences have been shaped by technology and how that's influenced her approach in working with students.
Mimi Kasner: I came to this country as an immigrant when I was 25 to attend grad school. I never really grew up with typing, it was pretty much just handwriting. So, I learned how to use a typewriter when I came [to the U.S.]. And a defining moment for me was learning about word processing—that was when I realized how powerful technology is. I did not have to rewrite my essays, and from that point on I fell in love with technology, how amazing it is that it can help people to be efficient and also do beautiful work.
I actually changed my career pathway. I switched to a whole different major and became a computer technology teacher in an elementary school. Once I had first grade student, a little girl, who came to our school in Kindergarten. She struggled through the whole year, could not read or write and it was really, really hard for this little girl to focus.
One day I was working with her using a website that helps teach the alphabet, and suddenly she turned around and made this loud noise with joy, saying, “I know how to read!” And she was just so excited about it. She was able to listen to the letters, and she finally recognized them.
I realized that we really need to look into how students learn and what tools are there for them. Students learn differently. Textbooks never worked for this student, but with this extra support she moved to a next stage.
Now I’m a principal, and we have been looking more and more into how to utilize technology to support student learning. We started a design challenge a couple years ago [to gather ideas]. One day during the middle of the design challenge, we had a fire drill. Students went out to the yard and afterwards, a first-grade teacher came to me and said, “My students are asking me. Can we have an extra 10 minutes?” I said, “What do you mean?” And she said, “The students said, they loved [the design challenge] so much, but the fire drill took 10 minutes away. We want our time back.”
That was really moving to me because what I realized when we gave students choice to learn, to explore, they loved it, and they really dove into that work
Now, we hear from Sam Jordan, the education technology coordinator for the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development. He shares a pivotal moment in his career where students connected virtually with learners from around the world, and how they overcame language barriers through technology and what that taught him about student agency and engagement.
Sam Jordan: As an educator, and someone who is charged with looking at how technology can be best used within classrooms, I'm always looking for something authentic. There are a lot of things out there that are fun and interesting but they don't necessarily bring us to an authentic experience, either as teachers and students interacting, or students to students.
I had an experience last year that was a pinnacle moment for my use of technology in the classroom. I got a chance to be in a classroom, and we were participating in what's called the “Skype-a-Thon.” It's a yearly event where teachers from all over the world reserve some time to connect through the Skype platform and either teachers or students connect.
In this particular instance, I had a bunch of fourth graders and we connected with some elementary aged students in Sri Lanka. The interesting part about this was the students in Sri Lanka didn't speak English, and obviously the students in Juneau, Alaska, didn't speak the language in Sri Lanka. And so we had this circumstance where students were looking to interact. They wanted to know about each other, and so the teachers started facilitate some questions and prompt kids to do this.
After just a few of the prompts that the teachers were doing on both sides, both in Sri Lanka and in our classroom, the students took over. They didn't need language, they just started sharing.
I had students going around the classroom, looking for something that they were working on, and there was one particular moment that I just loved where the students in Juneau had been working on creating dolls with traditional dress from around Alaska. They sewed and they glued and they put these really wonderful dolls together, and they put them up to the screen and shared their dolls and described them. The students on the other side got really, really excited, even though they weren't understanding what the words meant, they went away for a minute and they came back with their own dolls that they had been developing in their classrooms over in Sri Lanka.
There was this moment of real celebration on both sides where they realized they were kids halfway across the world from each other, doing the same activities.
The surprising thing for all the adults in the room was that it was a moment driven by students, where they decided on their own to do this interaction, and it didn't take language at all. What surprised me the most about that experience was that the students, they weren't in fear of not having language to connect. They could look at each other, they were smiling, they were sharing, they were gesturing. And they seemed to realize that really quickly. I don't see that necessarily with adults. And so, it was just beautiful to watch. The kids got it really quick that to be human and have a human connection can happen in multiple different ways.
What I hope that people see is that kids really get very quickly the ability to connect in a meaningful way without the formalities of language. Given the opportunity, they are very willing to engage in a conversation with anyone even if they don't have a common vocabulary, or a common language, that they find a way to connect and that they very quickly see the humanity in each other and that they celebrate it. They're excited, they're clapping and when I was in that classroom last year, they really came away with a sense that we had really connected with some other kids. It wasn't an experience just on a screen for them. That they really felt like they connected with those kids and wow, we talked to those kids in Sri Lanka.
Up next is Erica Aragon, an instructional technology specialist for Soccoro Independent School District in El Paso, Texas. She describes a time when a teacher she worked with in the district created a new program for first-year English language learners that inspired students to make their own support tools for their peers.
Erica Aragon: In my job I support schools [with technology], and recently one of my teachers who was in his first year of teaching reached out because he was on a search for a simple digital tool to help for video creation. His goal for his journalism class was for students to create some kind of persuasive movie. It just so happened to be our first year as a one-to-one campus for eighth grade at his school. And, a couple weeks after working with this teacher, another teacher reached out to me, saying there was a student in her class who said, “I learned about this really neat digital tool, but I want to make one where it's meaningful for me, and it’s purposeful.”
This was the student’s second year here in the United States; being a newcomer and learning the language, she wanted to belong in a community. So she created a program she called Growing Up, and it was an after school program to any students in their first or second year who are trying to learn English in the classroom. Emotionally, that can be very stressful, not only for understanding the content, but understanding what the teacher is asking for, or communicating with peers.
So, this student created her own after school bilingual program and it was like a domino effect. She spoke at our District Address that is hosted by our superintendent, Dr. Espinosa, and she was able to share her story to the community and to all the teachers that were there. It was quite moving.
I felt inspired because she referred to a teacher as her mentor, and it was the teacher that I had worked closely with, and I had no idea. I didn't meet the kids the first time the tool was introduced, because I simply showed the teacher the video tool and how to use it. And that in turn inspired this little girl to be like, “I'm going to go ahead and make a video, so I can create this program for my fellow classmates.”
One of my goals as an educator is to make sure our students feel self regulated and self disciplined for the skills they're gonna need for the 21st century. And what I think what's really important is that she took that upon herself, it was her own idea, and she took ownership. And that's what has inspired me: Knowing that, that one small moment that I spent with that one teacher, it blossomed into something very powerful.
Finally, we turn the mic to Melissa Dodd, the Chief Technology Officer for San Francisco Unified School District. She got her start in education and tech while working with schools in Boston and tells us about how her role taught her to be open to the uncertainty that sometimes comes with trying out a new tool or teaching method.
Melissa Dodd: Moving into K-12 public education was a phenomenal learning opportunity for me. I started my K-12 urban experience actually at Boston Public Schools. At that time I had gotten into the edtech space and how technology could connect and enable people to share across countries.
I took a job with Boston Public Schools, working in their instructional technology division, and it was eye-opening to work with teachers there. This was back in the early 2000's, when we were really just beginning to think about and embrace technology in ways that could support teaching and learning. And I got to experience that newness with them, and all that scariness, that uncertainty. Wireless didn't even really exist yet. There was something new here that we were trying to figure out together.
We'd go and visit schools and we talked to kids about how they wanted to learn, what they loved about learning and how they thought technology was going to support their learning. There was this little boy and he was probably in third or fourth grade, and he had these amazing ways that he thought technology was just going to change the world, and some of them came true. To see the way that he was able to think about the impact of technology, and what it would mean for him and how his eyes would light up, I carry that with me every time that I'm in a classroom or working with teachers or principals. How do we get that light in every kids’ eyes?
Technology is constantly changing. We can't keep up with it, and that we shouldn't try to. But there's always an opportunity to learn, and if we put ourselves in a vulnerable space and we put ourselves out there in trying something new, it's amazing to see what happens with other adults and with kids. It's okay to not really know exactly what's going to happen. Or you might have an idea of where you want to go, but you're not exactly sure how to get there. And if you're open and transparent about that, it's amazing the support and partnerships that you'll get along the way. So, just try.
This series was made possible, thanks to a partnership with Listenwise, an award-winning listening program that brings the most compelling podcasts and MPR stories to middle and high school classrooms.
The music you hear in this episode is by Joakim Karud and Chris Zabriskie.
Teachable Moments: Reaching Students Through Technology published first on https://medium.com/@GetNewDLBusiness
0 notes
playwrightsrealm · 7 years ago
Text
#talkbacktuesday: Sarah B. Mantell
Tumblr media
On today's #talkbacktuesday, we interview Sarah B. Mantell, whose play Everything That Never Happened will be read at the 2018 INK'D Festival of New Plays on Wednesday, April 18th at 3:00 PM and 7:00 PM. RSVP now!
Sarah's work has been performed and developed at The Theatre @ Boston Court, Yaddo, Seven Devils Playwrights Conference, Seattle Rep, Great Plains Theatre Conference, Yale School of Drama, Philadelphia Theater Company, Geva Theatre, Play By Play, Wildacres, SPACE on Ryder Farm, and Yale Cabaret. She has taught at Occidental College, Wesleyan, and the O'Neill Playwriting Program at New Haven's Cooperative Arts High School. She is a recent graduate of the Yale School of Drama and holds a BFA in illustration from Rhode Island School of Design.
You wrote about the "unseen" parts of Merchant of Venice. Although it revisits Shakespeare's work, does your play feel personal to you? Are there parts of it that come from personal experience?
Every piece of this play is personal to me. I've been trying to pretend that Merchant of Venice didn’t exist for as long as I’ve known it existed. I knew just enough about it to know something felt very wrong to me and so I managed not to see it or read it until grad school when a beloved director went into rehearsals for the play. I walked into his rehearsal room and encountered Shakespeare’s script for the first time in the mouths of people I love. 
My reaction to the text was so obviously different from everyone else’s. In a way that felt cellular. I left that room feeling alone. And also like that aloneness was my fault. I didn’t have any words to make a bridge between them and me. 
In Everything is Illuminated, Jonathan Safran Foer talks about memory as a sixth sense that for Jews is as primary as all the others: What does it sound like? What does it look like? “What does it remember like?”
Merchant remembered like something to me.
It remembered like my cousin who was put on trial for the blood libel in 1913, it remembered like my father’s chickpea soup, and like my best first date, and also the movie Dirty Dancing. It remembered like the way I stopped telling people I was Jewish, or bi, or a radical unschooler when I didn’t want to have to explain what that meant—like assimilation and passing and code-switching and like all the things I wish had happened but didn’t.
The cannon itself feels personal to me because it is personal. The stories we choose to tell and retell have a huge impact on how we see each other in our daily lives. I'm so deeply tired of the free pass we’ve given to the canonical. The time and artistry and space we give it on our stages. I’m tired of all the harmful stories we perpetuate in the name of tradition. I am hungry for an overturning. For those who have gone unheard for decades upon decades to say: this is what I see hiding under the story you think you know. This is what I see. Your play tackles specific aspects of Merchant, especially related to the treatment of women and Jewish people in the plot, which didn't "age well" considering modern values. Do you see your play as a counterpoint or an addendum to the original?
It can feel daunting to take on Shakespeare for any number of reasons. For me, it's the sheer poundage of his plays in every bookstore I walk into. But to be honest, I reject the entire idea that his play is the original anything. William took a long existing stereotype and imbued it with just enough empathy that it has lasted generations beyond his death. But it's still a stereotype. One that has been used as an excuse to harm an entire ethnicity/religion/race/culture of people for a very long time. His play has been used in the same way. Most notably when performed repeatedly in Nazi Germany. I don't want to see it on any more stages. I wanted to write a play that allowed these characters to speak in Jewish voices for the first time. To give them back their history, their humor, their heartbreak. 
In the process, I also fell in love with Lorenzo and Gobbo (the other two characters in my four-hander) who serve the plot in Shakespeare's play but who I think got short shrift in their own full contradictions and complexity. Shakespeare is a brilliant writer but the idea that he's our most brilliant writer is a distinctly harmful one. When we hold him up as the pinnacle of our artistic achievement we are elevating one specific experience and form above all other experiences and forms. We are saying that the best storytelling is white, male, and British to its bones. That's one particular experience. No more universal than any other. His plays will never do for me what We Are Proud to Present did. What Mary Jane did. What Fun Home did. What An Octoroon did. Shakespeare is brilliant and he is limited and he is bigoted. It is possible to know these true things at the same time. It is possible to love something and also name the way it causes harm. And what is missing from it. I wrote Everything That Never Happened to prove to myself that that is true. What were your goals coming into the fellowship? How has your play evolved during the process?
It was almost exactly a year between my first encountering Merchant in that rehearsal room and watching my first cast learn to crush a pomegranate for the Carlotta Festival production, amazingly, in the same room. That's a ridiculously short timeline. And there were parts of the play I left behind in the rush. At the Realm I've strategically expanded and distilled, filled specific plot holes that my team pointed out to me last May (thank you Carlotta Red!), I've clarified character relationships and the complications of casting a play about assimilation into whiteness in a moment when the profession has not caught up with the stories writers are telling. More than that, I wanted to see the play in the bodies of a few new sets of collaborators to understand where I can be clearer or go deeper. I'm grateful to have had the time. And to have landed this year at a theatre I respect with collaborators I adore. 
Thank you, Sarah! We can't wait to see it presented!
0 notes