ISSEA
ART & DRAMA
A warm welcome from the American International School of Lusaka!
The ISSEA Art and Drama festival brings students from eight ISSEA schools together for three full days of Art and Drama workshops and experiences. Traditionally, this event begins with a showcase of student work made in the host schools (both Drama performances and an Art exhibition). Students then engage in a series of workshops led by professional local artists. Finally, students create original work based on the theme of the festival. This work is showcased on the final afternoon of the event.
This festival offers Art and Drama students the unique opportunity to work with professional artists in an intensive workshop experience. Students expand their knowledge, develop their skills, and create original work in an environment that stimulates and encourages their creativity. This festival serves to explore and connect students to the culture of the host country, providing authentic artistic experiences. The content of the festival extends beyond what is traditionally available in the classroom and allows students the opportunity to reimagine their view of Art and Drama.
At the AISL ISSEA Art and Drama festival, students will attend six workshops, hosted by professional local artists. Additionally, Art students will have dedicated studio time to develop original work and Drama students will have time in ensembles to create an original devised performance.
In addition to their workshop and studio/ensemble experiences, students who attend ISSEA Festivals will also visit local art galleries to further understand Art in the host country’s context and gain inspiration for their own work. There will also be music and theatre performances at the school.
The theme of this year’s festival is RENEWAL.
Kind Regards,
Laurey Nevers and Sterling Johnson
Dr. Oli Tooher Hancock
AISL Director
Dear ISSEA Performing and Visual Arts Students,
A very warm welcome to AISL and to our first in-person gathering in over three years of thespians and artists.
There are almost 150 students, Drama and Visual Art Directors here from all eight ISSEA schools. These are from Ethiopia (ICS Eagles), Kenya (ISK Lions), South Africa (AISJ Eagles), Uganda (ISU Leopards), Zimbabwe (HIS Warthogs), Mozambique (AISM Buffalos), Tanzania (IST Twigas) and last but not least, Zambia (AISL Leopards). Wow, quite the gathering.
As AI has begun to revolutionize how and what we teach, finally we are realizing not only the importance of the arts in education but actually how crucial they are in developing you to be future ready. Creativity and Collaboration are arguably the two most important skills necessary for success in a world where factual information can now be gathered in seconds and where the need for human communication and relationships are more important than ever before.
Over the next few days, you all get to express yourselves, be yourselves and work together through a process of experiential learning and risk-taking. What an incredible opportunity. You also get to form friendships through this experience, some that may be life-long. I hope that you will also know yourself better and that you will have grown as a person.
I am excited to see what you produce, but actually it is the journey to get to that end product where all the learning, both of success and failures that will mold you.
Cherish every moment at AISL and enjoy our AISL warmth and hospitality.
Wishing all the very best. Enjoy!
Dr. Rick Odum
AISL Secondary Principal
ISSEA Drama & Visual Arts 2023!
Welcome to Zambia and to the American School of Lusaka. I can’t express how excited we all are to welcome the ISSEA Drama and Visual Arts community to our school.
When I arrived at AISL in 2020, I had never been to Africa, and had no experience with ISSEA. Having worked in the Middle East and Korea, my experience with international tournaments was limited in scale.
What I’ve found is that ISSEA ignites students’ passion for sport, for the arts, and for the spirit of civil competition better than any organization I have seen so far.
Participation in the arts is vital for the holistic development of students, and having the chance to get together with peers from across Southern Africa who share a passion is a rare opportunity that we are thrilled to help facilitate.
I look forward to meeting many of you, and to seeing students' creativity on display, in person again!
Please enjoy your visit to the American International School of Lusaka!