For more information about our outreach programs or if you are interested in bringing Striding Lion artists or performers to your school or organization, please send an email to Amanda or call 773-561-0494.

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Visit our friends at:
- Vittum Theatre
- Northwest University
Settlement House

| Our Teaching Philosophy | Educational Services and Programs

Our Teaching Philosophy

The focus of each Striding Lion arts residency, workshop, or class is on collaboration - teaching students interpersonal skills and tools for teamwork through the creation of original interdisciplinary performance. By using more than one arts discipline, Striding Lion artists offer participants multiple entries into the creative process. A child who excels in visual art is able to be a part of a performance through masks that he designs and paints, while a student who shows great physical talent will participate in the movement sections of the piece. Striding Lion artist-teachers are able to focus on each child's artistic strengths, giving the children more opportunities to succeed and leaving them with a truly empowering arts experience.

The interdisciplinary process also helps the students realize the value of individual contributions to the collaborative whole. The dancer connects to the visual artist's mask through her movement and finds inspiration in the visual artist's use of color and texture. The visual artist appreciates the dancer's skill at bringing new life to his creation. Through the collaborative process, these students not only grow to appreciate each other's individual talents, but realize the parallel concepts that exist across the disciplines.

Striding Lion InterArts Workshop has its roots in West Town where we have long maintained an arts partnership with the Vittum Theater, part of the Northwestern University Settlement House. We are committed to helping the West Town community grow and develop. But the boundaries of Striding Lion's outreach are not fixed. In addition to the continuing work with the Settlement House and the Vittum Theater, Striding Lion artists have served in recurring residencies at Robeson High School on Chicago’s South Side (2002-present), Foreman High School on Chicago’s West Side (2004-present), St. James Cathedral in Chicago’s North Loop (Summer 2002-2005), Webster Middle School in Waukegan, IL (2004-2005), and Dance Center Evanston in Evanston (Summer 2003-2005). In addition, Striding Lion artists have served in residencies at Peabody School (2001), Swift Elementary School (2002), St. Alphonsus School (2003), and Marsh Elementary (2004), to name a few. Striding Lion InterArts Workshop is a proud member of the Illinois Art Council Arts-in-Education Roster, who sponsored its first IAC Arts-in-Education residency at Devonshire Middle School in Des Plaines, IL in May of 2005, and who is sponsoring its residencies at Willard Elementary School in Evanston in January and February of 2006 and at Juliette Lowe Elementary in Arlington Heights in May of 2006. Striding Lion is always reaching out to communities in greater Chicago and beyond who are interested in exploring creative collaboration with us.

Please contact us if you are interested in Striding Lion visiting your organization or school.

We believe that our unique approach to arts outreach - an approach based in interdisciplinary collaboration, team teaching, and the celebration of community - can empower and uplift the individual student, teacher, community leader, single mother, business man-to name just a few. The process of creating original interdisciplinary art inspires individuals to come together and achieve more than they could alone. Collaborators come to recognize the unique contributions of each person in the group - including their own - leading to a stronger sense of self, better communication among individuals, and a stronger community.