Workshop

The Unusual Suspects Theatre Company (US) is a recognized leader in the fields of arts education, mentorship and community building, having been a thriving force in the underserved neighborhoods of Los Angeles County for over two decades. Our participant-driven theatre-arts programs utilize arts education to mitigate the underlying family and community risk factors that threaten the healthy development of the 1,000+ children and adults we serve annually (90% in grades 5-12), including foster youth and incarcerated minors.

teachers throughout Los Angeles and surrounding communities since 1995 and has had non-profit status since 2003. Research shows that children who experience quality language oriented activities demonstrate early development of literacy, fluency, and mathematical skills regardless of ethnic or socio-economic background (The Chicago Longitudinal Study, 2011). Studies also show that children who have a rich and varied language arts experience have an easier time

Culture Shock Los Angeles is a nonprofit dance and arts education organization that utilizes Hip Hop and urban dance culture to cultivate meaningful education, enrichment and entertainment programs to inspire positive change in the communities we serve.

Johanna Smith is a Professor of Theatre Education, Improvisation, and Puppetry at CSU-San Bernardino. Her research and practice focuses on integrating puppets into classrooms as well as professional Theatre for Young Audiences. She has served as a puppetry artist for Broadway-bound extravaganzas to museums to colleges to preschools and often directs tours for CSUSB. Her production of The Odyssey (director, puppet design) toured to the PuppetFair puppet festival in Sofia, Bulgaria in 2008, followed by a tour of 4 major Chinese cities for the Chonqing Children's Theatre season in 2009.

In just less than three decades of existence, LA Opera has become, under the leadership of Eli and Edythe Broad General Director Plácido Domingo, the United States' fourth largest opera company and "...stands out as a newly important force in American Opera." (Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times).