“A teaching artist is a practicing professional artist with the complementary skills and sensibilities of an educator, who engages people in learning experiences in, through, and about the arts."
- Eric Booth

Past Residencies and In-School Programs

Michele has lead in-school workshops and long-term residencies through her own company and various professional theater companies in the DC area. From Shakespeare to theatrical production elements, drama arts in the classroom heightens the learning experience for students, supporting the acquisition of skills such as collaborative learning, cooperation, concentration, focus, and commitment. 
InterAct Story Theatre
"According to Shakespeare"
Tour Locations: 
- White Oak Middle School, Silver Spring, MD (grades 6-8)
- Williamsport High School, Willamsport, MD     (gr 9)
- Harper's Choice Middle School, Columbia, MD (gr 8)
- Eastern Middle School, Silver Spring, MD (gr 7)
-  Willamsburg Middle School, Arlington, VA (gr 8)

Following the tour, Michele conducted three in-school residencies:
- Harper's Choice Middle School, Columbia, MD (gr 8)
- Eastern Middle School, Silver Spring, MD (gr 7)
​- While Oak Middle School, Silver Spring, MD
(gr 8)
Round House Theatre
Intersections Semester Residency
Bethesda Elementary School, Bethesda, MD
(grade 3)
Ford's Theatre Society
Oratory Festival:
- Francis Scott Key Middle School, Silver Spring, MD (gr 6)
- Watkins Elementary School, Washington DC
(gr 3)
- Horace Mann Elementary School, Washington DC (gr 4)

National Oratory Fellows Program:
Tubman Elementary Schools, Washington DC
(gr 5)
Horace Mann Elementary School, DC (gr 4)
Michele D. Vicino, Inc
Drama Workshop:
North Chevy Chase E.S., Chevy Chase, MD
(grades 3-6)
Theme Theatre:
North Chevy Chase E.S., Chevy Chase, MD
​(grades 4-6)
"Unpacking Shakespeare's Text"
Seven Locks ES, Potomac, MD (gr 4)
Shakespeare Theatre Co.
Long-term Residences:         
- Summit School, Edgewater, MD - A Midsummer Night's Dream (gr 8)
- Redland Middle School, Derwood, MD - As You Like It (gr 8)
- Pyle Middle School, Bethesda, MD - A Midsummer Night's Dream (gr 7)
- Woodlin Elementary School, Silver Spring, MD - Intro to Shakespeare (A Midsummer Night's Dream gr 4)

​Pre-Show Workshops:
   Brookwood School for Girls, Kensington, MD      
   Wooton High School, Rockville, MD
   Gaithersburg High School, Gaithersburg, MD      
   St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville, MD
   Frederick High School, Frederick, MD                   
   St. Mary's High School, Annapolis, MD
   Bullis School, Potomac, MD
​Michele Vicino is one of our most favorite Teaching Artists, and works in our Oratory Festival program and the National Oratory Fellows program. She’s incredibly creative and energetic, and thoughtful about working with students.

Cynthia Gersten
Associate Director of Education, Ford's Theatre

More About the Programs

InterAct Story Theatre, Silver Spring, MD

A pilot program, this school production entitled "According to Shakespeare" introduced students to Shakespeare's language through themes to which middle and high school students can relate. Beginning with "Parents and Other Authority Figures," students see how Hermia was forced to obey her father and marry a man with whom she was not in love. Then we dive into "Friends and Dating" through Romeo and Juliet as Benvolio speaks to Romeo about Rosalind, and again in As You Like It when Celia and Rosalind watch Orlando beat Charles. Followed by a few more themes, soliloquies and quotes, this performance has been acclaimed and well-received by teachers and administrators. ​

Shakespeare Theatre Co., Washington DC

As a Teaching Artist for STC, Michele carried out pre-show workshops as well as long-term residencies. Pre-show workshops prepare students to fully engage in the theatrical experience, by inviting students to participate in theatre exercises which dive into plot, character, and theme, take part in whole group discussion about the production and audience etiquette, and ask questions. 

Long-term Actor-in-the-Classroom residencies focus on a specific Shakespeare Play aligned with local school curricula. Over an extended period of time, Michele would delve into the text, teaching students skills in acting, text analysis and critical thinking. 

For more information about STC's in-school programming please visit:
http://www.shakespearetheatre.org/education/schools-and-teachers/

Ford's Theatre, Washington DC

​For four years, Michele was Teaching Artist for Ford's Theatre's local Oratory Festival, working with students to memorize and present famous speeches by Abraham Lincoln and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She also provided professional development, modeling lessons for teachers through The National Oratory Fellows program: "The National Oratory Fellows program is a professional development program for educators teaching Grades 5 to 8. Educators learn how to use oratory and performance as teaching strategies in history and ELA classrooms. Learn how to make history content come alive for your students as they discover the meaning and context behind some of history’s greatest speeches, and the people who spoke them."
​
To learn more about this opportunity for classroom teachers to enrich their teaching toolbox please visit 
http://www.fords.org/home/education/teacher-programs/national-oratory-fellows
Content Copyright © Michele D. Vicino, Inc 2018