RECOMENDACIONES

Mapping the stories of the participants’ experiences of partnerships and untangling the contextual complexities that exist has revealed the ways that this site specific inter- sectorial partnership has transformed into a mutually beneficial enterprise. With the use of rich descriptions and multilayered themes embedded within a 3 Act ‘play’ on partnerships entitled The Shared Space, I have found a way to illuminate the participants’ experiences as well as my own and in turn exposed many of the enablers and constraints (summarized in Table 5) to successful partnerships encountered along the way.

Table 4:Summary of enablers and constraints

Enablers Constraints

A collective investment in quality (pedagogical and aesthetic) outcomes.

Limiting preconceptions brought in from past professional experiences of working in similar partnership contexts.

Seeking advice and being open to feedback. Mishaps in scheduling and preparation. Preparation prior to entering industry space. Complacency that occurs when working

with same client for many years. Making allowances when working with

education.

Education taking on too many production roles.

97 Outsourcing crucial production roles to

industry professionals.

Unrealistic expectations (budgetary/time) of what can be achieved in a professional venue.

Enhanced roles (mentor and co-

collaborator) for industry professionals.

Unconscious ‘triggers’ caused by critical incidents or challenging experiences. Earning trust and respect. Not making allowances.

Taking the time needed to work with school groups and becoming familiar.

Communication difficulties.

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CHAPTER FIVE – DICUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Introduction

In Chapter Four, the in-depth interviews of the five participants from a professional venue and two school performing arts staff were combined with my own reflective journal to present a co-constructed narrative. The first act, Bumping into the Space, represented the challenges associated when the school group first enters a foreign industry space. This act revealed the limiting pre-conceptions (attitudes) towards both industry and education that are at play early on in the partnership – via the theme, What we bring with us. The importance of careful pre-preparation and planning and the difference this can make to the production outcomes during the crucial first day; the bump-inwas emphasized. In Act 2, Negotiating the Space, I highlighted the ways the two groups co-exist and included the importance of

effectively communicating, being realistic and making allowances. Whilst the theme, finding your place represented the ways participants negotiated their roles during the production. The final act, The Shared Space describes a familiar place for the participants where respect had been earned, and collaborative rewards abound through a shared investment in enhancing the overall quality of the high school musical experience. The benefits that flowed as a result of this seven year partnership conducted within an industry setting were also presented.

In this chapter, the research findings are explored and discussed. The four metaphors encased in the 3 Act ‘play’ on partnerships are interwoven (in italics) throughout the

discussion chapter and supported by relevant literature. The purpose of which is to offer new insights into arts education partnerships and to answer the three research questions.

First, “in what ways are partnerships experienced and negotiated for the purpose of staging a high school musical in a professional venue?”

The purpose of this section, is to discuss the ways that staging the production in a ‘foreign’ industry setting (professional venue)—not the usual space for a high school musical—was challenging. This was especially true for the school group, who had to find

effective ways of fitting an education model into an industry world. From an industry

perspective, having a school in the venue changed things and required them to adapt standard industry practices including enhancing traditional roles to include co-collaborator and

mentor, and modifying standard practices by going at a slower pace when an education client is in the venue.

Secondly, “what are the enablers and constraints to quality arts partnerships between industry and education during the staging of a high school musical?”

99 This section discusses how traditional ways of viewing teachers and industry were constraining in these partnership contexts. I also revisit two critical incidents that occurred on Day 1 and Day 3 of the school’s tenure in the professional venue to demonstrate the ways that established and outmoded attitudes towards working in these partnerships contexts can be ‘triggered’ and ‘reset’. Finally, I discuss a new space where arts education partnerships that are conducted in industry spaces can flourish if they are given the time to grow and both groups are united in a shared goal.

The third section addresses “in what ways, and to whom are arts/education partnerships potentially beneficial?”

One of the central aims of this study was to provide a better understanding and appreciation of the ways that inclusivearts education partnerships conducted in an industry setting may be mutually beneficial. I also discuss the importance of creating a shared vision of quality that includes a pleasing aesthetic with more pedagogically aligned values. Finally, I argue that even though staging a high school musical in a professional venue was

challenging, for the school group in particular, the venture was worth the mutual rewards that resulted.