SDEA Spotlight : Tiara Mia-Medendorp

SDEA Spotlight is a series of short interviews with SDEA members that peel back the curtain behind their practice, their beliefs about arts and drama education and their influences. Tiara has been with SDEA since 2013 and is a valued member of the executive committee (term 2015-2017). As an educator, Tiara infuses her passion for theatre in her teaching and as an arts practitioner, she is always thinking about how her involvement can inform her teaching practices. 1. What are you working on at the moment? Currently, I'm working on devising strategies so that I am able to contribute during the Next Generation Programme Asia. I'm flying to Japan to meet some talented practitioners in a couple of days. We'll be devising another performance for children and young people. Following that, I will be sharing the process through a workshop for the Goodman Arts Centre Open House. 2. What’s the direction of your work? Has it changed over the years? My work has changed over the years as a matter of fact. During my university days, it used to be dark and people were often scared of my performances. I've learnt that there are many other ways to get a message across. Also my target audience has changed too. Nowadays, I perform more for young people and do more work with the young too. 3. What is a dream project that you hope to do? A dream project is to own my own Blackbox or even just a space to practice my art. 4. How did you start out doing what you do? It started during my 'A' levels days where theatre was used as a means of escape from life. Then I discovered that there were like-minded people there and we were all trying to find a place where we belonged. After that, I realised that it made me a stronger person and I held on to it as I moved on to university. The passion just grew and I don't think I can live without it. 5. How do you keep your work fresh? I keep it fresh by attending workshops to hone my skill as well as learn new skills to apply it to my work. Talking to other practitioners also helps in the exchange of ideas. **

6. What do you think makes a perfect drama educator? Someone who is sensitive to the needs of the student and is able to help the students understand themselves better. 7. In one word, sum up your drama education journey. Grateful 8. Why is drama important? Why should it be taught in schools? Drama is important because it touches the soul. It should be taught because no other subjects deal with the matters of the heart. 9. Who was the drama educator that has the most impact on you? Charlene Rajendran. I think she would be bored to death as I always mention her name whenever this question comes about. I will never be bored of answering it though. In essence, she saved my life. 10. What is your most memorable moment in the classroom/on stage? 2006 Blackbox National Institute of Education (NIE) Eyes closed Moving to some kind of world music My nose leading the way Hearing Charlene tell us to move using another part of our body Feeling that I can finally be good at something 11. Share a drama activity that you love to do. Shake it out (right hand - shakes 8 times and then left hand - same number of times. Also the right leg and left leg. And the number reduces to 4, 2 and 1) It's done before a performance to get the energy up and also have fun at the same time. 12. You were the CD 2016 head of programming, what was the experience like and what was an important takeaway you learnt?** The experience was humbling. I was in awe of the amount of talent that the youths were showcasing. I could not be prouder of the fact that they were able to perform on another platform with the help of SDEA. One can never underestimate the power of youths. As for the programming, it was my first time. There was a lot to learn and I was very thankful that there were many people (SDEA secretariat as well as Exco and committee members) who were very helpful and understanding. We thought through what matters to the youths and programmed it as such. I've come to realise that this platform is important for youths to celebrate drama and themselves.