Trent Arterberry

Discipline: Theatre
Homebase: Sooke
Regions Available: Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley &, Howe Sound, Vancouver Island Lower, Vancouver Island Mid, Vancouver Island North, Interior, North, Remote, Kootenays, Virtual
Languages: English
Grant Eligibility: Eligible for 70% AIE

Trent Arterberry's unique brand of physical theatre combines mime, storytelling, puppetry, and audience participation. "A proven crowd-pleaser" (The Boston Globe), Arterberry has performed around the world from NYC's Radio City Music Hall to the Hong Kong International Children's Festival. He has given thousands of performances at schools across the US and Canada. Arterberry is also active in the AIC program and leads the soon-to-be world-famous Westmont Mime Club. Over the past decade, Trent has conducted nineteen artist-in-residence programs for elementary, middle, and secondary students on Vancouver Island. Trent's residencies involve working with a group of students for two to six weeks to create and stage (or video tape) a show performed in a school or community setting. Variously sourcing material from Shakespeare, Dickens, contemporary Canadian, American, and British playwrights, student writing, and children's books, Trent works to create a safe, inclusive, and respectful atmosphere that encourages students to bring out their best. Trent has used themes such as environmentalism, historical figures, great women inventors, twisted fairy tales and LGBTQ2+ issues to engage students in using their voices, bodies, and imaginations to create enriching and entertaining shows. Students develop literary skills, physical and vocal abilities and the self-esteem that results from a well-played performance.

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Performance(s)

Think Bigg

School Year: 22-23
Discipline: Theatre
Offered Languages: English
Grade Suitability: K - 6
Duration: 45 mins
Capacity: 400
Tech Requirements: One rectangular table; one chair; electrical outlet
Available Formats: In Person, Virtual

Amazing and amusing, "Think Bigg" combines mime, storytelling, puppetry and lots of audience participation. After demonstrating mime techniques, Arterberry fills the stage with a collection of intriguing characters like Roboman, who contorts his body in seemingly impossible ways, and Mr. Bigg, a three-foot-tall dancer who grooves to a medley of tunes from Motown to Bruno Mars. After learning about facial expression, gesture and body language, several volunteers perform a lively onstage finale called “So You Think You Can Mime.” Students will practice their newly acquired skills after the show and beyond. Teachers can access Trent's multi-part, "How To Be A Mime" video series to extend the learning experience into the classroom. District regulations allowing, this is a 45-minute assembly for the whole school. We recommend that a school with more than 400 students schedule two showings. Price of a second show at the same school is 50% of the one-show price. Trent also offers multiple, shorter-length, limited-capacity performances to accommodate COVID protocols.

Classroom Residency(ies)

Contact Me: 250-642-2788, Email, Web

Stories in Motion

School Year: 22-23

Trent worked with forty senior secondary students to create and perform a show based on stories and poems for a neighbouring elementary school.

The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey

School Year: 22-23

Trent worked with a group of middle-school students to perform and record “The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey,” an award-winning play with LGBTQ2+ themes. A highlight of the project was having the author, James Celeste Lescene, do a Zoom workshop from New York with our students on Vancouver Island.

The Odyssey

School Year: 22-23

Trent worked with middle-school students to stage and record a production of “The Odyssey.”

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Testimonials & Reviews

“Trent is a masterful performer. He was engaging to all ages, with students hanging on every word/movement. My class (and others, I heard) went back to class and tried some of the things Trent taught about mime. I also appreciated Trent’s flexibility around COVID protocols. He was on time and ‘low maintenance.’ Excellent job! Inspiring!” VP, Vic West Elementary, Victoria

"Again, we're incredibly impressed with Trent’s teaching. Our daughter thrives under Trent's guidance, attention and attunement. He has helped her develop her confidence, movement, diction, comic timing, and acting ability. Playing Leonardo da Vinci was a fantastic opportunity, as she was able to embody themes of genius, enthusiasm, inspiration, mentorship and artistic freedom. Participating in the play enhanced her social skills and development. A wonderful experience for her and for us!" Parent, Frog Song Farm School, Cobble Hill

"Trent Arterberry put on a virtual performance for our entire elementary school and we absolutely loved it! The words I'd use to describe it are "magically fluid". His performance was creative, unique, humorous, and intriguing. He was well paced, easy to follow along and had wonderfully paired interactive activities for the students that they could replicate at home - as my boys certainly did! On top of the amazing performance, Trent was a delight to work with. Absolutely amazing." PTA Chair, Swift Creek Elementary, Raleigh, NC

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