FunSongs Russia launch

Moscow celebration at the Kremlin 

Last week  at the Hotel Revel in Riga Charles Goodger attended a seminar dinner organized by the British Chamber of Commerce in Latvia - an opportunity to meet people and make new contacts. There he spoke to James Fanshawe of the  British Department of Trade and Industry and discussed the possibility of promoting FunSongs in Russia. Tentative plans were made for a field trip to the Ministry of Education in Moscow to present the benefits - and considerable savings for education budgets - of FunSongs materials. In the next few days FunSongs will launch the Russian-language version of its website.

FunSongs rehearsals at the National Puppet Theatre of Latvia

 
His Excellency Richard Moon with Samuel Goodger, 8

At the seminar event Charles also spoke to the British Ambassador for Latvia, HE Richard Moon. The Embassy supports FunSongs  and its joint project with the National Latvia Puppet Theatre. It was agreed to host a promotional event for teachers and educationalists at the British Embassy on March 18th. The aim is to showcase the FunSongs Show, currently being rehearsed by professional actors at the Latvia Puppet Theatre and scheduled to premiere in the Latvian capital during the last week of March.  

Actresses rehearsing "The Monster March" at
the National Latvia Puppet Theatre

CAIL celebrates its first birthday

Costa Latsos,  Emelie Loeb and Valentina D'Errico

C.A.I.L. the Bologna based Cultural Association for Interactive Learning was set up to continue the activities of FunSongs Ltd in Italy after its founder Charles Goodger left Bologna for the Baltics a year ago. In just one year the new Association has established itself on the Italian educational scene. Its main activities are booking and supplying FunSongs Shows, English Weeks and Labs as well as holding seminars and events for teachers and students alike.

You can see the leading members of the international team of people behind C.A.I.L. in the photograph above. Each brings their own particular talents to the growth of the organization -  and in a broader sense to furthering the benefits of  foreign language education to young Italians. At the time of writing, February 2009, C.A.I.L. boasts a growing part-time staff of over fifteen mother-tongue teachers and actors.

Valentina D'Errico (on the left in the photo) is the association's vice-president. From Apulia, she graduated from DAMS at Bologna University with a degree in dramatic arts in 2007. Part of her studies  involved an Erasmus year studying at Bangor University in the UK where she perfected her English.  Valentina also attended a class in English language proficiency held by Charles Goodger at the university's language centre CILTA where she first came into contact with the FunSongs Approach of language learning. It was also through Charles Goodger that she met Emelie Loeb (June 2006) who had just started  working for the UK-based organization as an actress and English teacher.  

Emelie Loeb

Emelie graduated from the University of California, San Diego in 2006 with a degree in education and languages. She heard about Charles Goodger and FunSongs through her Bologna roommate Kerstin Zimmerman (who had worked for the organization) and Peggy Kidney who runs  the University of California liaison centre in the Italian city. Emelie is highly musical and as well as a background in singing and theatre has a TEFL qualification from Eurotefl in Florence. 

Costa Latsos    

Though not part of CAIL's administration, Costa who comes from Sydney, Australia dedicates much of his time to the association as the leading FunSongs Show actor and puppeteer. He is also an experienced English teacher.  A trained opera singer Costa  has been involved in many prestigious musical events. He  played the role of the Italian tenor in Italian American Reconciliation at the Belvoir Street Theatre in Sydney, and that of Tadzio in Death in Venice (after Thomas Mann), directed by Bogdan Koca for Sydney Art Theatre.