Rotterdam-based, American-born theatre artist and educator Kathie diStefano will visit Maryland October 17 – 27, 2023 to share her environmental program ‘Operation Trash’ with area schools. Ms. Kathie uses creative arts to teach students, young and old, to throw trash away where it belongs and how important recycling is for our future. Ms. Kathie has taught drama and theater arts in Dutch public schools for many years, pioneering the concept of using performance arts to enhance required curriculum studies.
During her October visit to Maryland, she will be performing ‘Seagull Mamma,’ an interactive show for children in kindergarten through second grade about how our current trash behavior affects our environment. The show also serves as a comical ”introduction-to-theater” for young kids.
She will also be offering an assembly program ‘Operation Trash’ for middle and high school students. Ms. Kathie’s Operation Trash program is an entertaining assembly with facts and figures about how much trash we produce, why it’s a problem, and the need to increase our recycling strategies for a sustainable future.
Her programs also includes a section about Dutch culture, including teaching her audiences some words in the Dutch language.
Ms. Kathie is part of the artist roster at Arts for Learning, Maryland (formerly known as Young Audiences), a nonprofit organization devoted to enriching the lives and education of Maryland’s youth through educational and culturally diverse arts programs. Public schools, libraries, and other organizations across Maryland can sign up on the Arts for Learning website to schedule Ms. Kathie’s “Seagull Mamma” performance for kindergarten through 2nd grade, and the Operation Trash assembly for middle and high school students. Schools in Baltimore City are eligible for a substantial subsidy from Arts for Learning, Maryland when booking Ms. Kathie’s programs.
For more information and to book a program: go to Ms. Kathie’s webpage at the Arts for Learning website.
“Thank you for visiting Bay Brook Elementary School to teach our students about keeping animals safe by disposing of trash and recycling properly. Your presentation had our students completely engaged. Because you use so much humor in your show, the students didn’t even realize they were learning. They are all still smiling and talking about the show. We would love to have you back to Bay Brook any time.”
Ms. Woolley, Bay Brook Elementary School
“Kathie’s presentation was eye-opening! I had no idea how similar people’s perceptions of garbage in Rotterdam was to citizens in Baltimore. It was awesome when we had to get up and work together to undo the tangled mess we had become.”
Kate Amberger, Curtis Bay Elementary School
