Participant Biographies and Project Descriptions
Richard Rivera
Richard is a nationally recognized writer and producer with credits that include Emmy-Award winning documentaries, and productions for the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, and KPBS. Most recently, Richard returned to his passion of sword combat work. He choreographed numerous sword battles as a theatre major in college. This past year he created “The Queen’s Swordsmen,” an Elizabethan era sword combat team that performs high action, dramatic blade work and classic battle scenes from plays of William Shakespeare. Richard’s sword combat team performs at Renaissance Faires, schools, and libraries and provides an educational experience for all audiences, in particular the youth. Richard’s leadership skills, and his concern for the wellbeing of young people, make him an excellent teacher and ideal person to teach performance art to at-risk and underserved youth.
Using staged sword combat, Richard is introducing teens, not only performance art, but also the works of authors such as Shakespeare, Rostand, Dumas and more. The Valley Center Library located in a rural area is one of the only resources serving teens from lower income families. This setting provides the perfect space and support to help Richard meet his goal of creating exciting sword choreography for plays and novels. Staged sword combat is a perfect fit for teens who can benefit greatly from a skill that offers clear direction and goals, develops public speaking, is acceptable by peers, and engages them physically and educationally. At the culmination of the project will be a presentation which demonstrates the accomplishments in sword work, character development, and general stage presence of each student who has stayed with the workshop throughout the year.
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