April 2020

Well here it is, early spring in Connecticut and all is very quiet. TAO teachers have been home in accordance with guidelines from the Governor and DOC to stay put. Programs within the DOC and independent of it have been closed, yet we continue to plan and innovate for future classes and programs.

The Book Club at Garner was given Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations to read just before the program was suspended. A wonderful read, we all look forward to a vibrant conversation about our first foray into the world of Charles Dickens.

The Actors and Playwrights program at Garner CI had just completed the writing for the ambitious and compelling performances in May. We hope to be able to produce this thoughtful and brilliant work at a later date.

Osborn CI as well has put its planned performance on hold. The class members have been writing their own composite play, with multiple vignettes about neighbors coming together in a common cause. Sounds more than familiar now. The group has also planned to perform a play written by one of the participants for Black History Month. We hope to catch up with these performances as soon as it is permissible to go back to class.

The InsideOut Youth Theater Group is also on hold as we wait for remission from Covid-19. Plans are being formulated for the next session. We are exploring the possibility of a girls reading, writing and performance program and a performance program focused on the craft of magic for boys. We hope to have these two classes come together in a performance. We look forward to bringing these new and exciting ideas to life as soon as we are able!

We are very grateful for the continued support of our donors and staff as we, like everyone else, wait for some type of resolution which can get us back to doing the work we love. In this time, our thoughts are with the brave men and women on the front lines, who have finally seen the light shine on them, revealing the tremendous sacrifice they make every single day in order to serve.

We at TAO wish everyone good health and peace of mind. This too shall pass. Let our optimism, kindness, generosity and sense of community deliver us to a place even better than before.

Be well.