Multi-disciplinary Arts Practice with Community Groups: Theories and Practice of Group Work in Arts (OART-UT 1017)

Whether you are a filmmaker looking to better understand how to build a cohesive and productive film crew; a theatre maker excited about building a performance project or theatre company; a multi-media artist looking for ways to innovate your ideas for artistic work in collaboration with others; an artist looking for tools for building an artistic ensemble, or a multi-disciplinary artist looking to take your creative work out into communities as social practice, this combination lecture/activity-based class provides you with tools for better understanding how to enter into and engage others in collective creative work of purpose. Multi-Disciplinary Arts Practice with Community Groups: Theories and Practice explores the challenges and benefits of making artistic work with others and the tools needed to create meaningful collaborative projects. In this class we interrogate definitions of community and group, explore the balance between group process and producing an artistically excellent project, and examine the processes of creating artistic work with others to strengthen our own artistic voices while helping raise the creative voices of others. With its focus on social practice, this course provides a foundation for working with small group structures in a variety of community settings and professional creative work environments. The course satisfies a CA major requirement as well as a social science requirement for all other Tisch students.

Open Arts Curriculum (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


OART-UT 1017-000 (18613)
09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Thu
2:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Early afternoon)
at Washington Square
Instructed by Bitel, Mary

Working with Groups in Community Settings (OART-UT 1017)

This course provides students interested in exploring their artistic field of study in community settings or providing community service through the arts, with a foundation for working with small and large group structures in community settings. Students will gain an understanding of group theory and stages of group development as they impact the visiting artist’s work with community groups. Overview of social, political and cultural contexts for creating community-based work will be discussed in relation to entering into and engaging community groups in the creative process. Students will work in small groups to practice concepts and skills of working with groups in community settings and will prepare and present an individual project design for a visiting artist’s work with a community group, drawing on specific fields of artistic study and taking into consideration material covered in class lectures and discussions.

Open Arts Curriculum (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 3 Weeks

Sections (January 2021)


OART-UT 1017-000 (1396)
01/04/2021 – 01/22/2021 Tue,Wed,Thu,Fri
10:00 AM – 1:00 PM (Morning)
at Washington Square
Instructed by Bitel, Mary