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Project Pride Fun Home Workshop

An interactive workshop to explore Alison Bechdel's graphic memoir, Fun Home. Ages 16+. This is an in-person program. Registration is required. The musical, Fun Home, is based on Alison Bechdel?s graphic memoir by the same name. At the time of the text's publication in 2006 it was one of the first of its genre, blurring the boundaries between comics and memoir and establishing itself as a truly literary graphic text. In this workshop, we will explore many of the graphic memoir?s themes of identity, queer identity, coming-of-age, family dynamics, memory, and finding one?s place in the world. Bechdel took seven years to write and draw this text because of the care she took in asking big questions about herself and where she came from. She leaned heavily on literature, architecture, art, photography, and family history to come to terms with the questions that have both haunted and shaped her into the person and artist she is today. This workshop includes a variety of dynamic and engaging exercises including creative writing, flash performances, reflection, drawing, and group discussion inspired by Bechdel?s text. The goal is to think deeply about your own identities, struggles, and truths through the modes of art, writing, and storytelling. Participants do not need any experience in creative writing, drawing, or theater to participate in this workshop. All it requires is an open-mind and a willingness to engage in meaningful expression and exchange. <strong><em>Reading the book is not a requirement of attendance</strong></em> <strong>About Project Pride</strong> This June, Ellipse Theatre Community (ETC) in collaboration with Little Town Productions and Musical Impressions Studios will present Project Pride, a multi-faceted program intended to promote community understanding and connection amongst LGBTQ2IA+ individuals, families, and communities. The centerpiece and culmination of this project will be the Central Oregon premiere of the award-winning musical Fun Home, by Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron, adapted from Alison Bechdel's ground breaking graphic memoir. In this intimate musical, Alison sets out to unravel the many mysteries of her childhood through a series of memories and conversations ? from her coming out to her moving journey to acceptance. Fun Home is a refreshingly honest, emotionally charged, and wholly original musical that The New York Times calls ?extraordinary,? and ?a rare beauty.? All performances of Fun Home will occur at Open Space Event Studios in Bend, Oregon. In conjunction with performances, Project Pride will host additional activities and events such as panel discussions, pre and post-show talk-backs, open mic nights, workshops, queer art showcase, and more. <strong>Claire Brislin</strong> Claire Brislin is a writer, educator, performer and creative coach. She has a BA in English from Haverford College, an MA in Literature from Middlebury?s Bread Loaf School of English, and an MFA in Writing for Children from Simmons University. She currently lives, works, dances and adventures in Bend, OR. Claire has taught high school and middle school English, literature, humanities, drama and creative writing in schools across the country and the world, including Colorado, Singapore, Alaska, Chile, Arizona and Oregon. She is a middle-grade and young-adult author and the founder of For the Joy of Learning, a business offering workshops and mentorship for students and teachers who want more from our education system. She also offers writing support and creative writing classes and workshops for young writers, through her Write Now Programs.