Founded in 2002, Waterwell is a non-profit, civic-minded theater and education company. Waterwell strives to prove itself a vital presence in the lives of its audience by remaining always responsive: responsive to the events affecting the world at large, responsive to changing modes of expression, and responsive to the individuals attending each performance. Through entertainment and arts education, Waterwell hopes to inspire audiences and students to change their lives and the world in which they live.

Waterwell believes strongly in the power of the arts in youth development as a way to achieve its mission of inspiration and change. Since 2010, the company’s robust educational arm, the Waterwell Drama Program (WDP), has delivered top-quality, year-round, in-school theater training to over 200 NYC public school students each year through a partnership with the Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS). Partnerships with Manhattan Youth and others provide rich, civically-engaged art-making experiences to dozens of additional students each year. WDP programs are for students in middle school and high school.

Waterwell Drama Program (WDP) is seeking passionate teaching artists dedicated to inspiring creativity, discipline, and collaboration to join the faculty at the Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS). Partnering with PPAS, WDP provides 6th-12th grade students with comprehensive, conservatory-style Drama training during in-class hours, 5 days per week.  Strong classroom management skills and experience working with youth required. Classes meet for the full school year, November 2021–June 2022.

The acting curriculum is a core part of the drama curriculum for our students. The scaffolded curriculum provides students the opportunity to learn how to develop a toolbox of various acting techniques and methodologies, and apply that to a combination of devised work, existing contemporary and classic texts, and applied performance methodologies. Teachers should be passionate about anti-racist theater and acting training techniques and come with a willingness to share their expertise on these approaches as well as continue to learn.The entire program is rooted in our Artist as Citizen pedagogy/curriculum: a focus on civic-minded arts practice for our students to begin to understand how their theater training relates to their engagement with larger issues facing society.

We currently have one open position:

• High School Acting I for 9th grade high school students. This course creates the opportunity for students to work on ensemble collaboration, development of basic acting techniques for scene study and monologues, and working through. Along with the previously mentioned skills, we are interested in candidates who have an interest in connecting acting studies to larger program goals of empathy and citizenship. 

Compensation:
Seasonal salary based on $50/hour for class time, plus additional for planning and meeting time.

Responsibilities:

• Teach rigorous arts education curriculum for a public magnet school
• Develop class curriculum, lesson plans, papers and projects
• Collaborate with staff on best practices 
• Participate in professional development and planning meetings
• Grade students and provide meaningful feedback about their work and growth
• Liaise with students, parents, fellow faculty and Waterwell staff about student progress throughout the year, take attendance and participate in two yearly parent teacher conferences.

Qualifications:

• A deep commitment to/belief in the combination of conservatory-style theater training and artist-as-citizen practices
• An anti-racist teaching practice and inclusive pedagogical approach
• Significant teaching experience required, prior work in urban public schools a plus
• Exemplary classroom management skills
• Experience writing curricula that includes clear, active learning goals
• Dedication to assessing student growth

Please send resume, cover letter and a sample lesson plan to jobs@waterwell.org by 11:59PM on October 14th, 2021. In your cover letter, please be sure to address why you are interested in the Waterwell Drama Program and the aspects of the curriculum that interest you most. In the subject of your email, please indicate “Teaching Artist Application – ACTING”