Alice Jerome (Brownlee)
Got a message that my friend Alice was going to be Toronto sharing her book ‘Trees Please” . thought I would post a little about her that was created for our Dodoland site way back when. She planned on doing something at Arcadia in Toronto this November.
Alice is a songwriter, singer, actress, clown, gardener, and sign interpreter. She has helped co-create eight environmental plays for the Portable Theatre group, which has toured in Canada and the U.S.A. She helped create “Raiders of the Lost Breath” and celebrated the one hundredth birthday of Parks Canada with “Forevergreen”. Also created was the “Message in a Bottle” play, for the Ministry of Environment”, Ontario. She has written the Green Anthem “If You Love This Planet” and “Fish Out of Water” amongst many other songs. Alice has also toured in the United States with Jean Houston as the players of the dromenon in a production of the “Life Force”.
Her clown development has been enriched during her four years with Richard Pochinko learning the ins and outs of North American Indian and European style clowning. This has enabled her to elicit the innocence perspective to apply what he called “new eyes”. She writes of her time with Richard – My clown training started in 1972 with a Ken fite workshop. In1982 I took baby clown with Richard Pochinko. The class and teacher enthralled me as I took clown mask, joey,August, ringmaster; stretch and strengthen your clown, white goddess, kinetics, and clown writing over the next four years. Richard was the best teacher I had ever met. I loved observing him teaching all kinds of people. His wonder and delight in the possibilities of people made me a better teacher when I began teaching clown in the 90s. I benefit the most in my relationship as Howard and I both studied clown with Richard. In good times and bad we put more, more and seeing with new eyes into application. Thank you Richard still”.
Her environment interest has developed through work with the “Don Valley Cleanup”, Friends of the Rouge, Great Lakes United, The Green Party, Pollution Probe, Greenpeace and the Ministry of Environment.
Alice’s love of the land has led her to work and study the cycles of nature. In seven years of professional gardening with the Theta Environments Tree Crew, Fahey Landscaping, Metro Parks and Green Goddess gardening, she has developed, great respect for and knowledge of trees and flowers.
In collaboration with Della Burford on “Journey to Dodo Land”, she utilized sign language in the Deaf and Hearing Schools throughout Ontario. Alice co-wrote “Inside Me”, a song used in the Dodo Land performance in New York.
Alice taught Eco drama in the summer program for three years at Ossington Old Orchard School, taught clown through mask making at Arcadia Artists Coop and various other location and plus a summer camp on Toronto Island.
Recently Alice is a new author and has created a book called “Trees Please!” which is composed of poem/songs by Alice and fabulous illustrations by Gary Wein.
Create a Dream, with Della Burford 