November Newsletter
Who Doesn’t Like a Good Football Metaphor?
A message from Executive Director Jenny Stadler
Executive Director Jenny Stadler
Just like the start of football season, Fall Term is always an exciting time at PHAME—with new students joining the team, new classes kicking off, and new performance opportunities brought onto the field.
Three and a half years ago, at the start of the pandemic, our Radio Drama class was a bit of a Hail Mary pass. We were tackling the move online swiftly after our school was shut down, and were scrambling for classes that might work well in this new world called Zoom. Radio Drama turned out to be a winner.
Radio dramas originated in the US in the 1920s as an easy, low budget way to get performances and stories into people’s homes. They were popular up until the 1960s when television took over, but have recently been coming back into popularity. In the ‘20s, to enjoy a radio play you didn’t need a ticket, transportation, or fancy clothes. You just needed a radio (or a friend with a radio). These qualities also made Radio Drama a great fit in 2020, when PHAME was trying desperately to get art out to students when we couldn’t gather in person. And surprisingly as we’ve brought so many classes back in person, our online Radio Drama class continues to gather strength. You can listen to one of our Radio Dramas at www.phamepdx.org/rd2023.
This year, both our education and performance programs are going to be digging in deep with Radio Drama. The class is being offered in three parts throughout the year as one of our “Technique” classes, with students having the opportunity to write, perform, and then produce their own Radio Drama. (Read more about our “technique” level classes in Education Manager Laura Loy’s piece below.) And this December, our Winter Concert will be modeled on a mid-century Holiday Radio Show, with music, comedy, gaiety, and a whole lot of winter revelry. We just know it’s going to be a touchdown.
We hope you’ll join us for our Winter Concert! Information is below. Stay warm, stay dry, and have a wonderful season.
—Jenny R. Stadler, Ph.D.,
PHAME Executive Director
Ring-A-Ding-Ding, we’re going to sing!
Mark your calendar for a fun twist on a PHAME tradition: for this year’s Winter Concert we’re channeling the spirit of old-time radio shows. Get ready for an evening of song, dance, and comedy.
Tuesday, December 19, 6:45-8:30 PM
Alberta Rose Theatre, 3000 NE Alberta Street, & streaming online
Choose your price: $20, $15, or $10 (Arts for All Tickets: $5)
Tickets at phamepdx.org/wc2023 or scan the code with your phone!
Laura Loy (right) performing with students at our Spring Term Get PHAMEous open house.
PHAME’s Class Types
A Message from Education Manager Laura Loy
PHAME’s arts classes have always given students the opportunity to explore their creativity in new and exciting ways. However, in recent years we’ve realized the need to better support students who want to professionalize their artistry, as well as students who want to dive deep into a particular topic. After gathering ideas and information from students and our program staff, we introduced three “class types” in last winter’s course catalog.
The three class types are: Exploratory, Technique, and Lab/Ensemble classes. Exploratory classes are arts foundation classes open to any student. Technique and Lab/Ensemble classes require either previous experience in the subject or instructor approval. The class types aim to give students a clear expectation of the coursework they are signing up for—if they want a community-based art class without homework, they can choose an Exploratory class; if they want a larger commitment and more advanced concepts, they can choose a Technique or Lab/Ensemble class. The class types also support our Teaching Artists: when they teach one of our Technique or Lab/Ensemble classes, they know their students come to the class with a baseline of knowledge in the class’s topic, and this allows them to skip to the more advanced concepts more quickly.
A unique aspect of PHAME’s programming is our community focus: you don’t graduate from a community, you grow together. Exploratory classes provide continuing education for students while building artistic community. Classwork changes every term, but will always strengthen the foundational principles of an art form and help students discover their own artistic practice. They are a great fit for students who want to expand their artistic knowledge while also building relationships with people who share their experience of disability.
Lab/Ensemble classes ask a lot from students and are a bigger time commitment: they have longer class periods and required homework, and they often have rehearsals and performances outside of school hours. These classes are for students who have taken ownership over their artistry and are ready to share their work on a wider platform, and students in these classes generally work on long-term projects. Lab classes acknowledge the fact that as an artist progresses in their field, they must turn inward to develop their personal style.
Technique Classes are the newest addition to our curriculum, and I’m personally most excited about the addition of this class type. Like Lab/Ensemble classes, they are more advanced than Exploratory classes. However, Technique classes are topic-based and allow for deeper study that isn’t possible in Lab/Ensemble classes because those classes focus on projects. Technique classes create space for students who want opportunities to specialize and theorize.
The introduction of class types has made all aspects of our program stronger because we’re giving students more ways to dig deep creatively and engage in the community. We’re giving them more opportunities to explore Excellence—one of PHAME’s core values—on their own terms. Already, I’m seeing students putting in extra work and taking more ownership over their artistic practices; in turn, they’re growing faster as artists.
Warm regards,
Laura Loy, PHAME Education Manager
Save the Date for Our Next PHAMEtastic Gala: Ruby Jubilee!
Join us for a magical gala celebrating 40 years of PHAME!
Sunday, March 10, 2024
Dinner: 6 PM
Cocktail Hour: 6:30 PM
Concert: 7:30 PM
The Melody Event Center
615 SE Alder Street
Portland, OR 97214
Dinner and Concert: $175
Concert-Only Ticket: $95
Tickets on sale soon
Sponsorships Available
Cats and PHAME
By Stacy Kane
A sonnet written in Poetic Songwriting, an Exploratory PHAME class
I love the classes that I take at PHAME
I learned how to do them online with ease
At first Zoom was hard but now it’s the same
As taking classes in person, a breeze
I’m now taking the most in person classes
That I’ve done since Covid-19 hit
I’m taking improv, musical theatre
Mixed media, and ballet, I love it
After my day at PHAME, I come home to purrs,
My cats. They act so cute and want to play
Cookie brings me her toys, her cat catchers
Smitten with a kitten, boy I’ll say
Cookie plays with her toys: mice, balls, and fish
She loves her treats, wet and dry food, and fuzz beds
Drawing by Aaron Hobson
School Stats
Fall 2022 - Summer 2023
• Total students served: 141
• Total new students: 35
• Total classes offered: 103
• Total tuition assistance awarded: $32,631
Your support makes this work happen. Thank you.
Winter Term Enrollment Starts Soon!
PHAME’s Winter Term will run January 8 - March 14. If you or someone you know is interested in becoming a PHAME student, now is a GREAT time to schedule a Prospective Student Interview. Contact Alex Geffel at ageffel@phamepdx.org or give them a call at (503) 764-9718 ext. 18.