Profile - Lisa Weaver

Lisa Weaver directing

Instructor Profile

Meet Lisa Weaver
Instructor of Theatre

Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Acting, National Theatre Conservatory; Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Drama, Tufts University

Question and Answer

  • Question

    Would you list some recent accomplishments?

    Answer

    I won the Goddard Rhetorical Prize at Tufts!!

  • Question

    What is your approach to teaching?

    Answer

    I have taught almost every age of student from Kindergarten to Lifelong Learners, but I love teaching at the college level and especially love Anoka Ramsey. My students are veterans, new immigrants, HS grads, moms, dads, retirees, theatre geeks, athletes, nurses, and everything in between, and we are all celebrating the human need to tell and share our stories.

  • Question

    What makes your curriculum interesting or valuable to students?

    Answer

    What I love about theatre is that there are no right answers. I really love the playwrights and directors and actors who leave the audience with questions at the end of a play but don't hand them all the answers. Instead, we, the audience, have to decide: can we feel empathy for a character like Stanley Kowalski or Richard III? Is it tragic or romantic or... annoying when Romeo and Juliet die?

    I really enjoy it when students disagree with me and their classmates, but they have to be able to discuss what I call "the Why"! Why did you laugh at that scene? Why is that a pretty costume? Why does that theme make you uncomfortable?

    Theatre teaches so many useful life skills like teamwork, public speaking, communication, empathy, conflict resolution, creative problem solving, etc.

  • Question

    How do you think students describe your teaching methods and classes?

    Answer

    I like to say that as a director I am a democratic dictator. I love suggestions, and I will try different ideas, but in the end, someone has to choose; someone has to decide; and that someone will be me!

    In the classroom, my students would probably say I encourage organized chaos! I like structure, but I also leave room for the unexpected. For example, if there is a major world, local or campus news story, I will make time to discuss it. These events may be the basis for the next great play!

  • Question

    What are some ways that you help students succeed when they need extra help?

    Answer

    Come visit me in my office or drop by the theatre. We faculty members are not unapproachable outside the classroom. It's a small campus - get to know us!

    I also highly recommend Student Services. If I were an Anoka Ramsey student, I would be getting all the advising, tutoring, transfer and career counseling I could get. Take advantage of all the school has to offer!

Fun Facts

  • Fun Fact #1

    I can do the splits! And a handstand!

  • Fun Fact #2

    I tend to use dialects all the time - even in class. I am pretty good at Southern American, British, French and a sort of unnamed Eastern European accent.

  • Fun Fact #3

    I have seen Prince in concert about 10 times. RIP, Prince!

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