Many students volunteer with children’s art organizations to boost their resumes, and then upon graduation, skip to the typical 9-to-5 job behind a corporate desk or venture off to pursue their own creative dreams.
Former UCLA students Evelyn Rudie, Danny Hom, and Dr. Ann Irvine Steinsapir, however, have turned working with young art students into careers. From theater to writing to ancient art, they find themselves using a number of the skills learned from their time at UCLA.
Rudie was the first child actress to be nominated for an Emmy Award for her role as Eloise in TV’s “Playhouse 90″ at the age of 6, and she has a gold star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Currently the co-artistic director and theatre artist/educator of the Santa Monica Playhouse, Rudie personally understands the benefits theatrical exposure can bring to children. With the Playhouse, a not-for-profit corporation, she provides theater workshops and educational programming for 4- through 17-year-old students and keeps the learning on a small, one-on-one scale.
“A lot of actors and playwrights today think that, “˜I don’t do children’s theater, I only do real theater.’ I think that point of view was instrumental in what we do here (at the playhouse) and how we present the work and how we approach the work,” Rudie said.
Rudie cites her UCLA English professor, J. Lee Kazanau, as a shaping force that led her to pursue a career working with children.
“He gave a whole new meaning to children’s literature, the history, where it came from,” Rudie said. “Even though I had always … determined that I was going to use children’s theater and family theater as a vehicle for change, it gave me the understanding that children’s literature and children’s theater is not a stepchild to “˜real literature’ or “˜real theater.'”
Rudie pursued a degree in film at UCLA from 1966 to 1974. Though she did not complete the degree, her very first day as a UCLA student stays in Rudie’s memory as the beginning of her unexpected path. That day, she also visited the Santa Monica Playhouse for the first time.
What began as a search for an exercise class turned into more than 40 years of involvement with the playhouse.
Rudie, who experienced firsthand the good and the bad that the world of theater offers through her own acting career, wanted to provide a safe environment to introduce children to theater.
On the other hand, Hom, who graduated from UCLA last spring with an English degree, carried his interests in both writing and volunteering into a career with the organization 826LA, a non-profit group that helps students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills.
Hom began volunteering at 826LA as a student in 2005, and rather than send out resumes for a typical desk job, he found convenience in continuing with the organization for a paid salary after graduation.
“I really enjoyed it from the first time I started volunteering there. That is why I stuck with it,” Hom said. “As I got closer to my degree, it was exciting to be involved with something permanently that I had done for free for a long time.”
826LA works to build children’s confidence in their writing through free workshops, professional publications, and other means. About 90 percent of 826LA’s students come from Hispanic families, many of whom do not speak English.
“Working with the kids teaches me about what a diverse set of abilities people possess and how important it is, especially in education, to be sensitive to the way that different people learn,” Hom said.
Working with children has made him aware of the challenges of teaching non-native English speakers.
“It has reinforced in my mind the importance of everyone receiving an education regardless of background,” Hom said.
While Hom’s career path was a continuation of his undergraduate experience, Steinsapir’s route to teaching students in the arts was a bit more unexpected. After receiving her doctorate in art history from UCLA, she encountered difficulty finding a job that specialized in Roman art anywhere outside of Rome.
She found a solution with the Getty Villa in Malibu, which houses ancient art. Steinsapir never originally intended to work at a museum, but she fell in love with the ancient art, encouraged by her professor, Susan Downey.
“She really inspired me with the Roman world. I feel teachers of any kind are so important because you never know whom you are going to touch,” said Steinsapir. “My education from UCLA has been the most invaluable tool that I have.”
Steinsapir has worked for three years as an education specialist for academic and adult programs at the Getty Villa, designing tours for students of all ages.
Working with students has the benefit of being able to inspire. After organizing a UCLA class to view a production of Aristophanes’ “The Wasps” at the Villa, one student loved the production so much that she changed her major to classics, and is now a graduate student in archeology.
“Having the arts in your background helps you problem-solve,” Steinsapir said. “When you have the arts, it gives you other realities: possibility, hope, and beauty.”