MARFA – Marfa Live Arts, in partnership with Marfa ISD and other local area nonprofits, has teamed up once again for the 14th Annual Camp Summer Shake Up. This week Marfa Live Arts (MLA) is instructing a group of 20 third- through eighth-grade students in a dramatic arts and singing workshop that culminates today, Thursday, June 5, at 11 a.m. with a student showcase at Hibbits Gym on the Marfa ISD campus behind the school cafeteria.
According to third-year MLA Artistic Associate and Teaching Artist Rachel Tate, the program “continues integrating mindfulness and yoga into the elements of performance and other theatrical explorations.” She explained, “This year, we are focusing on adding musical elements, dance, and the continuation of a lot of play. It’s the first week of summer, and I want us to laugh and explore within the ensemble and see what we can make together.”
Under the theme of “Let the Sunshine In,” she added, “We have the students exploring 1970s music and vibes with the help of Marfa Live Arts instructors Fatima Anaza, Nina Martin and Amanda Bloom also spending time with the group,” she said. “These three artists are brilliant creators and are so much fun. The kids are having a really good time! We all are.”
Anaza, who is also teaching the Summer Shake Up students for the third year, has been looking forward to once again working with the students. “I remember being asked by Tate to assist with the first year, and it’s become one of my favorite times of the year,” Anaza said. “It’s a real greeting to the summer to get to name and place emotions with the students and share my meditation practice.”
For Anaza, working with the students has given them a high appreciation of the program. “We prepare as good theater people do, but then we encounter the present moment and the spaces we have privilege to use,” she explained. “It’s incredible, zany at times, but overall one of the most enriching things I’ve ever done”
For Tate, the program offers her a chance to both get in touch with her inner child as well as see the creativity in Marfa’s youth. “I’m a big kid at heart, and any time I can be silly, play, and create something, I am a happy camper. This week always manages to be the best of all that,” Tate said. “Also, these kids are incredible and funny, and I like to see the way their brains work when we’re coming up with ideas. You really never know what’s going to come out of their thoughts, and then we run with it!”
For Tate, the program is not only an educational time for the children, but a boon for the community. “Every time we come together, I leave more assured of what a gift Marfa Live Arts is to Marfa. As a person who spent most of their life working in a theatrical setting, having this as a resource and creative home for me is a real blessing,” Tate said, adding that the community is invited to the showcase. “Come on out to our showcase on Thursday the 5th at 11 a.m. I would really like for the kids to have an audience to share their talents and creativity with.”For more information on current and future programs, please visit www.marfaliearts.org.