Elementary Schools Announced For OSKAR Tour

Bullying and gender stereotypes are issues youngsters deal with every day. Now, K-5 students around the Bay Area can explore these important issues in an engaging and creative way as TheatreWorks Silicon Valley brings its award-winning Oskar tour to Bay Area Elementary Schools. Developed in an effort to help today's youngest students develop the resiliency and strategies needed to cope with bullying at school, and to increase sensitivity and empathy, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's Education program will present the West Coast Premiere of Oskar and the Big Bully Battle, Part 2 as well as Oskar and the Countless Costume Changes, written by award-winning playwrights Prince Gomolvilas and Matt Ackels. The Oskar tour runs March 2 - April 10, 2020, and will travel to schools in the South Bay, Peninsula, East Bay, and San Francisco (see list for specific schools). To contact TheatreWorks Education about scheduling an assembly, schools may email education@theatreworks.org or call 650-463-7146.

Among the schools to be visited in the coming months are:

South Bay
Eaton, Cupertino
Anderson, San Jose

Blackford, San Jose
Carolyn Clark, San Jose
Dahl, San Jose
Empire Gardens, San Jose
Meadows, San Jose
McKinley, San Jose
Oster, San Jose
Painter, San Jose
Toyon, San Jose

San Francisco

Thomas Edison, San Francisco
Los Cerritos, South San Francisco

East Bay

The Academy of Alameda, Alameda

Southgate, Hayward

Ruus, Hayward

Peninsula

Laurel - Lower, Atherton

Laurel - Upper, Menlo Park
Belle Haven, Menlo Park

Duveneck, Palo Alto
Ohlone, Palo Alto

Ronald McDonald House, Palo Alto

Cipriani, Belmont

Monta Loma Elementary, Mountain View
Fiesta Gardens International, San Mateo
San Mateo Park, San Mateo
Portola Elementary, San Bruno

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's ongoing Oskar Tour returns for its thirteenth year travelling to Bay Area schools. The tour has reached more than 170,000 students, receiving positive feedback from students, teachers, administrators, and parents. While all Oskar plays deal with their subject matter in a humorous fashion, they create conversations that can inform and impact on student behavior.

"The Oskar shows are high energy and big fun," says TheatreWorks Director of Education Lisa Edsall Giglio, Ed.D., "The playful style of each story engages students, and Oskar invites students to laugh and listen to topics they are concerned about and wrestle with in and out of school. Our goal is to generate ongoing conversation students can share in school and at home with a combination of a study guide, Oskar show, and Q & A with the cast after the show."

Following up on an Oskar Tour favorite, Oskar and his friends are back in Oskar and the Big Bully Battle, Part 2. Making its West Coast Premiere, this show is written to give K-5 students the tools needed to handle and understand the epidemic of bullying that occurs in schools every day. In Oskar and the Big Bully Battle, Part 2, Oskar plays detective and takes on the biggest case of his career. While the previous show introduced the idea of bullies, victims, Bystanders, and Upstanders, this playground whodunit digs deeper into the bullying epidemic and invites audiences to understand the bully-victim cycle. Oskar and the Big Bully Battle, Part 2 cleverly incorporates and builds upon research which reveals that many bullies are victims of bullying themselves. This hilarious and mysterious sequel continues to encourage students to not only stand up for victims but also facilitate techniques for expressing empathy for bullies-hopefully moving everybody closer to breaking the vicious cycle. Actors use the techniques shared by many schools to call out and define Upstanders, Bystanders and Victims.

In Oskar and the Countless Costume Changes, Oskar fulfills his dream of directing the school play. However, when he tries to cast his show, a backstage brouhaha starts brewing. Beth feels brave and wants to play the Knight. Frank is feeling smart and wants to wear a crown and play the intelligent princess. Oskar, who initially believes that only boys can do Kung Fu and only girls can be gentle, is challenged by how his friends feel. In the end, Oskar discovers that when his friends are allowed to shine for who they are, everyone is happy-and his play is a success. This contemporary comedy tackles gender stereotypes head-on and encourages audiences to practice understanding and empathy. Oskar and the Countless Costume Changes was originally commissioned, developed, and produced by TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and the Palo Alto Unified School District as a part of their partnership with Kennedy Center Partners in Education Program.

This year's Oskar tour includes three professional Bay Area actors ready to tell the story of Oskar and his friends. Jomar Martinez will play the beloved 10-year-old Oskar. Seen as Frank and other roles in TheatreWorks's 2019 Oskar Tour, Martinez has performed on stages across the Bay Area, including San Jose Repertory Theatre, City Lights Theater Company, Foothill Music Theatre, and Palo Alto Players.

Playing the roles of friends, classmates, teachers, and more are Tanya Marie and Max Seijas. Marie has worked internationally on an array of film, television, theater, musical theater, and voiceover projects. She has been seen onstage at Los Altos Stage Company, Inferno Theatre, Z Space, and New Hampton Theatre. Seijas's credits include performances at Custom Made Theatre, Left Coast Theatre Company, and Quantum Dragon Theatre.

The Oskar tour is designed by TheatreWorks set designer and Properties Master Christopher Fitzer and TheatreWorks Costume Director Jill Bowers. Giglio notes, "One of the joys of working at TheatreWorks is sharing the amazing talents from the main stage across departments."

TheatreWorks Director of Education Lisa Edsall Giglio, Ed.D. directs this year's productions of Oskar and the Big Bully Battle, Part 2 and Oskar and the Countless Costume Changes. With over 20 years of experience, Giglio is an accomplished arts administrator, educator, director, teaching artist, and theater artist. Her experience in education includes positions with the San Francisco Opera, University of San Francisco, California State East Bay, Alameda County of Education, and Harlem School of the Arts. Giglio was the Tour Manager and Company Manager for San Francisco's Pickle Family Circus and England's Fin de Siecle. Additionally, Giglio has directed for award-winning Bay Area companies that include Woman's Will, Rough Theatre, fablewood productions, Center for Imaginary Solutions, Playwrights Center of San Francisco, and the Playwrights Foundation. She has also directed for various companies in the U.K. Giglio earned a BA in theatre from San Francisco State University, an MFA in directing from Middlesex University in London, and an EdD in education from the University of San Francisco.

Reaching 15,000 students each year, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's K-12 education programs include in-school classes that focus on student-generated work centered on playmaking and performance skills, popular summer camps, and student matinees that comprise study guides, pre-show workshops, and a talkback session. The Children's Healing Project is an improvisation-based theatre arts education program that serves hospitalized children and their families with drama workshops and bedside visits at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, El Camino Eating Disorders Unit, and the Ronald McDonald House. TheatreWorks also enjoys a partnership with the Kennedy Center of Washington D.C. that includes the Palo Alto Unified School District and Stanford Live.

Celebrating its 50th Anniversary Season, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is the recipient of the 2019 Regional Theatre Tony Award. With over 100,000 patrons per year, the Palo Alto-based theatre company has captured a national reputation for artistic innovation and integrity, often presenting Bay Area theatregoers with their first look at acclaimed musicals, comedies, and dramas, directed by award-winning local and guest directors, and performed by professional actors cast locally and from across the country.

Media sponsor for TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's 2019/2020 season is the San Francisco Chronicle and SFGATE.