Danielle Daniel

Danielle’s career includes a wide variety of theater projects including storytelling programs and workshops. She is the author of a children’s book, The Ghost of Old Man Willie. Danielle’s plays have been presented at the Southern Theater, the Pillsbury Theater, Purdue University and the Paramount Theater in Saint Cloud, Minnesota. Her tour shows and storytelling programs have received rave reviews from educators, parents, community organizations, and most importantly, from students of all ages. She is a recipient of a LIN Grant, Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship, Jerome Fellowship and a Many Voices Award from the Playwright Center. Danielle has a B.A. Degree in Communications from the University of Minnesota and completed The Kennedy Performing Arts Center’s “Artists as Educators” program through Northern Iowa University.

Workshop Description

Using themes from Hannibal Lokumbe’s In The Spirit of Being, students will explore interconnectedness through the lens of peace—a common goal across cultures—looking at the commonalities between all human beings.

My goal is to encourage students to think, care, and find their own creative voice. Since not all children learn in the same way, I use a combination of music, creative writing, movement, visual arts, storytelling and dramatic arts to inspire and stimulate students’ imagination.

This can often be therapeutic, transformative and healing. Students will create more than just beautiful poems or drawings or music, more than just performance art; they are learning about respect, trust, and peace. My workshops also empower students to speak out more often against injustice, such as bullying.

Below is a sampling of the workshops I offer as well as suggestions for how to prepare students for my work with them. The workshop titles are only suggestions; I will be happy to collaborate with you to customize a workshop to enhance your educational goals for your students.

Creative Writing Workshops

Connecting Cultures: Exploring Peace: Students will view and discuss international peace symbols, create their own symbols of peace, and read peace poems by Maya Angelou and Sonia Sanchez. Students will write their own poems about peace, first looking at their own actions and how they can add peace to the world. The goal is to emphasize that peace is a common goal shared by cultures across the world.

To prepare students, see “Connecting Cultures: International Symbols of Peace” on p. 48 and “Poems of Peace: Sonia Sanchez and Maya Angelou” on p. 122 of the WITNESS Teacher Resource Guide.

Words of Life: The Poetry of Langston Hughes: Students will learn about Langston Hughes, and read and discuss his poem “Life is Fine.” They will then write poems about their own lives—these can reflect both positive and negative aspects of their lives as well as times which they’ve had to overcome something that was difficult.

To prepare students, see “Words of Life: The Poetry of Langston Hughes” on p. 85.

Making Connections: Your Family History: Students will use genealogy as a way to connect to their family history (keeping in mind that families come in all shapes and sizes) to achieve a greater understanding of themselves. They will interview a family member and write a personal story/poem.

To prepare students, see “Where We Come From: Personal Genealogies” on p. 62.

Visual Arts/Creative Writing

Images of Life in Visual Art: The Paintings of Clementine Hunter: Students will learn about the work of Clementine Hunter, an African American artist who celebrates the beauty of everyday life in her paintings. They will create their own art based on themes related to everyday life and/or write a short story from the perspective of one of the characters in their drawing/painting or from Clementine Hunter’s paintings.

To prepare students, see “Images of Life in Visual Art: The Paintings of Clementine Hunter” on p. 81.

Theater Arts/Storytelling

A Quest for Freedom: The Dred Scott Case: Dred Scott was an enslaved African American who went to trial to sue for his freedom in 1847. Students will discuss freedom and equality using Tableau (frozen pictures) and storytelling, dramatizing the Dred Scott story.

To prepare students, see “A Quest for Freedom: The Dred Scott Trial” on p. 91.