Hear My Voice
This past spring, AWB facilitated Acting Lab for Youth at the Widener Memorial School in Philadelphia, PA. As an extension of the School District of Philadelphia, Widener Memorial School is a public school for students with physical disabilities. There, the Acting Lab program was led by Maria Cefferatti, AWB Jr. artistic director and AWB Sr. music director; and Will Thomas, mentor and former AWB Sr. actor. For this school spring semester, students were able to create and collaborate on an original song, Hear My Voice.
Through some guidance during weekly classes, students were able to put together a piece that encourages the importance of making their voices heard. The opening scene focuses on a small group of students working on a puzzle and that group hears the beginning of the song, Hear my Voice. They, then, leave the room to find other students coming out of their classrooms, singing and dancing along to the song as a whole group. The video ends with a large group of students outside of the school, smiling, and chanting the school mantra, “I am somebody and so are you.”
The process of creating the video was very exciting for the students. Will and Maria worked with the students on writing the lyrics to the melody of the song. Once the lyrics were completed, Maria recorded individual students singing. Some teachers at Widener also wanted in on the project and shared their talents via the guitar, drums, and bass guitar. A special thank you to Michael Candelori and his crew from Big Picture Alliance who filmed and edited the video. They met with the students to share their ideas and suggestions about where the video should be filmed. On filming day, the students were so excited seeing BPA with all their equipment, ready to go for the recording process.
There were many goals of the video: 1) to celebrate and highlight the talent of the students at Widener and 2) to give the students the chance to collaborate in the creative process of writing, singing, recording and performing their own original piece. Lastly, the purpose of the video was to encourage its viewers to see and hear one another through similarities rather than our differences. Acting Lab mentor and assistant, Will Thomas says, “I think one of the things that makes this Acting Lab at Widener so great is how similar it is compared to what we do at AWB. I can see each participants confidence rising with every class… They are in a nurturing environment surrounded by people whether it be other students or teachers who want to see them succeed. The students persevere time and time again despite all of the obstacles they face. They have taught me more than I ever could have taught them.”
Join Us
AWB relies on volunteers.
The first Sunday of every month volunteers assist our actors at workshops as they learn their lines and rehearse their parts. Our most dedicated volunteers support our actors throughout the year and are a part of the yearly performance. There are opportunities for people who want a creative outlet through set design, props and costume development. Great for early teens, adults and seniors!