Recreating Creativity — Classes during COVID

Recreating Creativity — Classes during COVID - theHumm September 2020

The pandemic has dealt a huge blow to artists and performers, cancelling gigs by the gazillion and making it difficult for people to teach art, theatre, music and movement. Fortunately, creators are, well, creative by nature, and many of them have been hard at work figuring out how to continue to keep students engaged and learning. Below, a few teachers and studios explain how they are doing just this in our area.

The Almonte Dance Company is committed to providing a fun, safe environment for staff, students and families! “In addition to our Screening Station and Checklist, we’ve arranged individual 6x6 physical distancing squares for dancers in each of our spacious studios. All registered dancers will receive Safety Guidelines that describe our protocols and ensure that families and staff adhere to the directive established by Leeds, Grenville and Lanark County District. Shorter terms with virtual mini-recitals will help you feel comfortable with your investment at our studio. We can’t wait to dance with you this season — register today to save your spot!”

The Almonte Potters Guild is happy to start their classes again in the week of September 21. There can only be 4 people in a class, and all students must wear masks and follow current COVID-19 protocols, including practicing social distancing when possible. There is also still room for a few studio potters. On Thanksgiving weekend there will be a sale on October 10 and 11 from 10–5 at the studio. The pottery sale will be held outdoors and inside. Luckily the Potters still have made some great pots!

At the Ottawa Children’s Theatre (OCT): “we give young people skills that last a lifetime. Now online, our programs are highly interactive, skill-based and fun! OCT LIVE Online 2020-2021 offers 25 different classes for ages 4–18 in Acting, Creative Drama, Musical Theatre, Improvisation, Designing for Theatre, and Writing. Our classes emphasize language arts, body awareness and creative thinking in a supportive environment with small class sizes. Our instructors are professional artists working with us from Ottawa, Toronto and New York City. With OCT LIVE Online, we’re only a time zone away.” ottawachildrenstheatre.net

At David Ivens Studio, face shields are the best solution for working in the studio. “I have six isolated workstations, and the studio is 1600 sq feet so there is plenty of space. There will be a supply of alcohol hand wipes for tools we have to share. I expect anyone coming to the studio to be aware and respect the health concerns of others. Book early, but let me know the day before if you have symptoms, a sore throat or fever — you can cancel and book another day with no penalty. Classes are every Saturday, so come healthy. Hope to see you soon!”

Peter Brown peterbrown.ca is now teaching jazz and blues piano online! “Like so many artists, all aspects of my music career were interrupted by the pandemic. Obviously teaching one-on-one piano lessons in peoples’ homes was no longer safe. Happily, though, I’ve found the transition to teaching online via Skype, Zoom or Facetime to be surprisingly easy. As long as I can see the student’s hands at the keyboard and as long as I have copies of whatever they’re working on, we can make just as much progress as we did in person. It does mean a little bit of effort sending music ahead of time, but it also eliminates travel time for the students and myself. While I do teach all styles of piano, my specialty has always been introducing “readers” (players who can only play from sheet music) to styles that generally depend on the ability to “play by ear”: jazz, blues, rock and country. So lessons are about knowing chords and chord patterns, internalizing the syncopated rhythms of these styles and adding fills and improvised solos. Even though there isn’t much written down, I find no more difficulty explaining and demonstrating concepts online than I did in person (it helps to have 40 years’ practice in explaining music theory!).”

Lynn Melbourne — A Gift for People - theHumm September 2020

By Sally Hansen

Art… and Soul

Re-gifting is frowned on in some circles, but when your gift is a talent for capturing the character, the strength and the internal beauty that people wear on their faces, sharing that gift becomes an act of kindness, empathy and generosity. When tragedy struck in March at Almonte Country Haven, a long-term care home with 82 residents, local portrait artist Lynn Melbourne used her talent to reach out to the devastated residents, their families and their caretakers.

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Recreating Creativity — Classes during COVID - theHumm September 2020