Mosaic Literary Conference

The Mosaic Literary Conference presents creative ways for keeping books and reading valuable sources of knowledge and creativity. This day of professional-development workshops will help educators incorporate literature into existing curricula to further explore course work focused on cultures, history, and social studies.

This year the festival will celebrate the 85th anniversary of the birth of Malcolm X and the 45 anniversary of the publishing of The Autobiography of Malcolm X. SOYA's founder, Khadijah Ali-Coleman has the privilege of presenting in this conference for the third year in a row. Here is her workshop description:

Creating Dialogue: Using Plays as Tools to Initiate Conversation
Facilitator: Khadijah Ali-Coleman

Listen to the voice of Saartjie Baartman, the woman known as the Hottentot Venus, tell you her story of how her life became a horror tale of caged theatrics and dissection in a museum. Better yet, become Saartjie Baartman as you read her story in a dialogue between her and her South African sister in the stage play Deconstructing the Myth of the Booty. Why not write your own vignette depicting a satirical look at African-American life after reading the scene “Git On Board” in George C. Wolfe’s stage play The Colored Museum? Once writing your vignette, perform it as catalyst for a discussion on modern perceptions of slavery. After reading Jeff Stetson’s one act play “The Meeting”, imagine if the main characters Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had their fictional meeting in 2010 after Rodney King, 9/11 and the election of the first Black president and write your own act featuring dialogue between the two characters.

In this session, learn how educators can use play-reading as a tool to initiate conversation and analysis of social mores. Educators, regardless of theatre experience, can effectively use plays as tools of engagement, providing youth the opportunity to critically think and synthesize information and personal opinion into creative art. 

Click HERE to get the full schedule

November 5 & 6, 2010
Hostos Community College
450 Grand Concourse
Bronx, NY 10451