The Creative and the Critical: Transforming Learning through Artistic Practice

Guest Faculty at the National School of Drama, Theatre-in-Education wing, Tripura

My Fulbright-Nehru Proposal: My desire with a Fulbright-Nehru teaching fellowship is to make connections. I propose to teach Applied Theatre and Arts Integration courses at the host institution and connect the courses with practical programs offered in the community in partnership with local arts and education organizations. The connected courses and programs interrogate and demonstrate the efficacy of theatre to address contemporary issues and maximize learning. How does theatre respond to the needs and interests of children in the 21st century? How do artists effectively engage children through theatre? How can artists help classroom teachers embrace the educational importance of creativity for children?

Drama in Education sessions

Production Work

In Your Hands

Conceived and Directed by Daniel A Kelin II
Devised with the NSD 8th batch

When the ocean is invaded by ten million pieces of plastic, what will happen to the little creatures under the sea?  A modern fable for children about human pollution and the power of even the smallest of creatures.

School & Teacher workshops

Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu, India
I have worked with the Artistic Director, Velu Saravanan, many times. Most significantly we performed in several cities across South India in his play.

Kadal Bhoothum (the Sea Monster)

A production of the Aazhi Children’s Theatre Group starring Velu Saravanan and Daniel A. Kelin, II.  Performed under a tree near a rice field near Muthupillaipillam Elementary School, Pondicherry, India.  This event happened on my birthday.  I shared chocolate with the child audience, a local birthday tradition.

Shantipur, West Bengal
Over three glorious summer weeks, I trained the actors in applied drama techniques.  I also devised a play with them in which I also performed. (Blog of my experience)

Mystery of Nihoa Island

The performance was staged as a part of a Children’s Theatre Festival in July of 2012.

Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu
A boarding school for Indian students who live locally and abroad, Isha is connected with the Isha Yoga Center.  I have conducted professional development workshops for most of the faculty, as well as residencies with a significant portion of the student population. (Blog of my experience)

Bhopal, Madya Pradesh
The 2017-18 Ensemble International Theatre Festival brought together artists of multiple backgrounds and experience from India, Nepal and Sri Lanka for a 15 day workshop on Theatre-in-Education.  Mixed language groups created primarily non-verbal vignettes on the theme of life choices that were performed for equally mixed groups of schoolchildren to University faculty.  (Blog of my experience)

Bhubaneswar, Orissa
The theatre’s mission is to connect the artistic struggle developing a Modern Indian Theatre style with social movement for changing peoples’ mind and choices of life, through demonstrating alternative cultural life and performances. Theatre was major instrument to experiment with such as : Theatre for Awareness (for performers as well as the audiences); Revival of Puppetry with modern theme; Theatre in Education, Women’s empowerment through theatre, Theatre as a personality building exercises being always with a peoples oriented movement. (Blog of my experience)

As a 2009 Fulbright-Nehru Senior Research Scholar in Education, I designed a project called Animating Mythological History. Through drama, writing and field trips to Mahabalipuram, I guided Class 5 to 8 students to develop deeper investment in and understanding of mythological history as portrayed through temple architecture in order to broaden the students’ concept of their contemporary cultural selves. (Blogs of my experience)

My Fulbright also resulted in Drama as a Way of Learning. Click to find out more.

In 2006 I was awarded an Ann Shaw Fellowship by TYA/USA.  I conducted a pair of school-based programs in Chennai and Pondicherry with an all-boys catholic school, an all-girls government school for disadvantaged families and a charter-like school for girls.