STEM on Stage Series
Invention! Combining Simple Machines!
Watch the Archive Now!
January 26, 2012
Great things come to those who play! Join the Midland Theater, The Works and Licking County Players’ STEM on Stage series for a performance filled with force and motion, inspiration, and the wonders that wait in every pile of junk! Mix two parts problem solving, a dash of simple machines and a heaping helping of fun for a recipe designed to reveal everyone’s inner genius!
With a substantial grant from The PNC Foundation through its Arts Alive program, The Midland Theatre has teamed with the expertise of the Licking County Players and The Works to create three 40 minute programs based on science, technology, engineering, and math commonly known as S.T.E.M. curriculum.
The plays are developed as live stage performances bringing S.T.E.M. curriculum to life. They are directed by veteran theatre professional, Edie Norlin and starring Meredith Zahn, as Stephanie, a young adventurer exploring the world of science. She is helped in her endeavors by her close friend, Marie, played by Lisa Ridenour and her trusty computer, Hal, skillfully created by Dennis Kohler.
The Works; a center for arts, science and history coordinates content and matches program themes with actual school curriculum. The Licking County Players provide artistic over-site and talent for the staged productions. The Midland Theatre is the venue for the performance plus video capture and live web-streaming. Learning "Science through the Arts" is at the center of this project. The plays will engage students with animated characters and creative stories that are embedded with core teaching materials. Optimistically this fun, yet educational approach will make tedious S.T.E.M. learning more attractive. The programs are accessible through traditional fieldtrip methods and widely available through the internet.
A special performance of both INVENTION and CHEMISTRY will take place on Saturday March 3rd at 2pm at The Midland. This show is open to the public and tickets are just $5 for everyone at the door.
PNC Arts Alive is a three-year, $1.5 million initiative of The PNC Foundation that supports visual and performing arts groups with the goal of increasing arts access and engagement in new and innovative ways.
Fieldtrips and internet streaming is supported with generous grants from The Licking County Foundation, the Round Up Foundation, American Electric Power, Holophane, Inc., and Tectum, Inc.
A public performance of Invention! and Chemistry! will be offered on March 3, 2012.
Chemistry! Mixing Magic!
March 2, 2012
How many things could you make with 90 different building blocks? How about the entire Universe! Discover the kinetic world of atoms, where matter and energy collide and the only constant is change! Learn what makes a mixture, concocts a compound and why science sometimes fizzes, pops and even goes BOOM!
A public performance of Invention! and Chemistry! will be offered on March 3, 2012.
Electricity! The Shocking Truth!
April 13, 2012
It powers our lives, lights our world and runs our gadgets… but no one (not even scientists) really knows what it is! What does rubbing a balloon on your head have to do with mp3s? How can the motion of tiny particles light entire cities… and split trees like twigs? And what do magnets have to do with it?! Electricity captured the imagination of the Ancient Greeks and the Founding Fathers and has become the energy we can’t get enough of.
Director
Edie L. Norlin
Edie L. Norlin has directed numerous plays including Mousetrap, Leading Ladies and The Real Inspector Hound for various area venues. She is also a busy actress performing a one-woman show based on the life of American Shakespearean actress Julia Marlowe. Area acting credit favorites include Queen Elizabeth in Rosebriar Shakespeare Company’s Richard III; and Billie Dawn in OSU-N’s Born Yesterday, and at Licking County Players as Anna in The King and I and Jessie Mae in The Trip to Bountiful. Edie is also a produced playwright. She has served on various arts related boards and held various offices. Currently Edie is an education lecturer at The Ohio State University-Newark Campus. Her husband is Associate Dean Paul D. Sanders and she has two sons, Peter and Jacob.
Writer
George Buss
With a degree in Theater and Education, George Buss has been combining the aesthetics of storytelling with the fundamentals of science education for the last ten years. His scripts have been performed in museums in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Harrisburg, PA. George has served as the President of the International Museum Theater Alliance, and currently serves on the Committee on Education for the American Association of Museums. He currently works as the Director of Experience and Education at Minnetrista in Muncie IN while freelancing as playwright and museum consultant.
Cast
Dennis Kohler
Dennis Kohler (HAL) is no stranger to Licking County Theatre. Since 1971, he has directed, designed, acted in, choreographed, costumed and built specialty props for over 300 productions. Dennis has worked with Licking County Players, OSU-N Theatre and Weathervane Playhouse, where he recently appeared in “Little Shop Of Horrors,” “Big River,” and as Amos in “Chicago.” Dennis is now a retired art and drama teacher. He taught for 30 years with the Northfork Local School District and the Newark City Schools.
Lisa Ridenour
Lisa Ridenour is currently studying to be a middle school teacher at OSU. She is expected to graduate in the summer of 2012. Raised in the area, she was an avid performer at Sheridan High School, having roles in such shows as Taming of the Shrew, Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Ladies of London. One of her favorite roles was in Post Mortem at OSU. More recently she joined the Licking County Players in their production of Twelve Angry Women. A passion for entertainment, she joins these particular shows to bring theatre and education together. She is excited about using local art to enrich education.
Meredith A. Zahn
Meredith A. Zahn, age 16 and homeschooled, is excited to be a part of the S.T.E.M. Onstage shows. She loves being on stage and has been performing most of her life. Meredith has performed with Licking County Players, Columbus Children's Theatre, Columbus Civic Theater, Gallery Players, Pickerington Community Theatre, Worthington Community Theatre, Lancaster Arts and Civic Club, and Millersport Community Theatre. Some favorite shows: Ruthless (Tina Denmark), Anything Goes (Hope Harcourt), The Tale of Snow White (Snow White), Bye Bye Birdie (Kim MacAfee), The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (Beth Bradley), and Cinderella, A Hip Hop Fairy Tale (Cinderella). Meredith is also an accomplished dancer and singer. She was a competitive dancer for six years, competing locally, regionally and nationally. Currently, Meredith studies at BalletMet Columbus. As a singer, Meredith was a finalist in Columbus 's Voice of the City competition two years. She has performed as a soloist at the Reynoldsburg Tomato Festival, Pickerington Violet Festival, Concerts 4 Charity (for Nationwide Children's Hospital), and Boo at the Zoo (Columbus Zoo). www.meredithzahn.weebly.com
Series Sponsors
Thanks to a grant from PNC Arts Alive and support from The Works and Licking County Players, The Midland Theatre is proud to present The STEM on Stage Series!
Additional support provided by American Electric Power, Holophane, Inc., Tectum, Inc. and The Licking County Foundation.
