HIRE A MIDWIFE
One-on-one creative support for emerging and established artists
We want to work with you to discover your artistic voice and celebrate it.
We believe you have a unique creative voice, and your perspective is vital. Art is not a luxury. Creativity is not something one person has over another. Creativity is in every choice we make—in the clothes we wear, the food we eat, the homes we make, and the words we speak.
If you have a project you keep thinking about, an idea that excites you, or the desire to carve out more time for your creativity, we are excited to work with you!
We are Creative Midwives
What is a Creative Midwife?
A Creative Midwife stands next to you—witnessing not only your work, but your development as an artist. We are a sounding board, a means for support, feedback, accountability, and advocacy. And above all else, we lift up your unique individual voice.
We work with you in one-on-one sessions to identify your goals, struggles, and cravings. But most importantly, our time together will be about process—learning what you need to be creative: your habits, your values, and what success looks like for you.
We believe a Creative Midwife does not give answers, but helps you find your own.
Here are some examples of when you might want to Hire a Midwife:
Working on a Project
A play, manuscript, art installation, teaching curriculum, album, dance piece, clothing line, etc.
Leaving school, changing careers, applying to grad school, starting a new business etc.
A Creative Approach to a New Chapter
Building your Creative Practice
Creating tools and skills for your personalized practice. Reinvigorating and prioritizing your art making.
How do I begin?
To start, fill out our intake form.
We will schedule a free 30-minute consultation for you with one of our Midwives. This allows for both people to get to know each other and decide if we are a good fit. It is also a time to ask questions and get a sense of what a typical Midwife meeting looks like.
If you decide you would like to move forward, The Midwives will write up a proposed plan and share with you for review.
Once you approve our plan, we will schedule your first meeting and begin!
Claribel Gross
I’m Claribel (she/her), Theater artist, educator and founding member of The Midwives. I think of myself primarily as a theater maker. I am fascinated and energized by the creation of new work and I am interested in the reasons why people are making their own work. I value the ways in which we all (art makers) experience joy, pain, fear, and satisfaction from producing works of art and sharing that with others. I enjoy collaborating above all else, I love talking through ideas, being in the room with people, working towards a common goal, being brave and experimenting with how to communicate an intention. I believe in the never ending experiment. I believe in the joy of creating.
I think that art is for everyone, I think that anyone who wishes to make art should be encouraged to do so. My formal training includes a B.A. in Theatre Arts from The University of Minnesota as well as an MFA in Theatre from Sarah Lawrence College. I have training in Theater of the Oppressed Techniques, Theater for Social Justice, and devised/collaborative theater. I also have training as a teaching artist and facilitator.
When I work with an artist I begin with the artists’ unique and personal voice. I value the artists’ creative impulses and gently guide them towards the art they feel inspired to make.
Emily Ritger
Hi, my name is Emily Ritger (she/her), and I am a performance-based artist, educator, and founder of The Midwives.
Learning to call myself an artist has been a long and winding road. Growing up in rural Wisconsin and all through school, I believed that there was a “right” and a “wrong” way to do things. I was obsessed with following rules and emulating those who came before me. On top of it all, I desperately wanted everyone’s approval. And while I was privileged to be exposed to various forms of art as a kid, I didn't really value or understand my own perspective, or creativity for that matter.
My professional career has been a slow dismantling of these hierarchical systems in myself and breaking down the idea of what I “should” be or do. Every day I recognize a new manifestation of the creativity surrounding me and recognize it’s vitality. I’ve been asking myself the past several years why it is so hard for me to call myself an artist, and why, for that matter, it is similarly difficult for so many of the amazing artists I work with. I have a million ideas why (having to do with money, societal value, success, and approval), but what I think is more important: I believe everyone is an artist. And our creativity is what makes us uniquely human.
When I begin working with an artist, I am constantly returning to the mantra a professor shared with me: “a good teacher does not give ideas, but helps you find your own.” It wasn’t until grad school that I was encouraged to find my own ideas, but when I was, I was shocked to realize the gift I had been given. I love working with an artist to help them discover their own unique ideas. I strive to give feedback and support that supports the artist’s vision—not what I want to see, or what the industry wants to see, but what the artist wants to make!
My formal training includes a BS in theatre and philosophy from the University of Evansville as well as an MFA in theatre from Sarah Lawrence College. I’ve trained at La MaMa Umbria in Italy, Paul Sills’ Wisconsin Theatre Game Center, and the Neo-Futurists. I have worked with individual artists and organizations across the country developing new work including American Theatre Company, Redmoon, Cleveland Public Theatre, The New Harmony Project, and Northlight Theatre. I currently teach at Carthage College and am the Associate Director of the Theatre Arts Division for the National High School Institute at Northwestern University.
“Working with Emily as my midwife was one of the most beneficial experiences I’ve had.
The focus of our work was to help me through a moment of transition in both my professional and personal life, something which felt daunting at the time. With Emily as my midwife, I felt both supported and empowered throughout the process. She gave me a sense of accountability and found ways to shift my perspective regarding how to approach this time and the work I was doing. There are many tangible skills that I picked up from Emily during this time that I still use to this day.”
“I am always going to be grateful for the nine months Emily was my midwife. Not only was I successful in a traditional definition of the word (I completed a draft of a new play, completed a good chunk of a novella manuscript, and started work on a new project), I was able to gain insight into my process, my aesthetic, and my artistic goals. From the work we did together, I now have an artistic statement that I feel confident telling other people about and can adequately communicate my work. Having that language is priceless.
Emily also developed writing exercises and assignments to keep me motivated and engaged in the work—many of which I still use today when I’m stuck at work or in my avocational work. In my short time with Emily, she planted seeds that I’m still harvesting—years later. ”
“Working with Claribel was a life changing experience. I came to her with a dead-in-the-water passion project - a screenplay I had written and hoped to adapt to the stage. We collaborated together for twelve months. From our first session to our last, she found numerous ways to instill in me the creative confidence and persistence I had lacked for years. During our weekly sessions Claribel was always on top of her game. Professional and delightfully personable, her techniques allow your strengths to be realized. An encouraging, patient and insightful guide, she helped me uncover what was keeping me from reaching my goals. It is because of her thoughtful guidance and caring nature ... that I finally realized my artistic dream.
A brilliant, creative, positive, and energetic soul — Claribel is an absolute joy to work with!”
“Working with Claribel was a game-changer. My writing partner and I came to her to seek help in adapting our work to the stage. Claribel is a gifted listener and creative problem-solver. Using these skills and creating bridges from her own experiences, she’s able to guide the most frustrated writer(s) through the process of identifying their own writing bottlenecks and discovering ways to work through difficulties.
Finally, the process of being guided to discovery means that the skills are learned and practiced. We’re much better collaborators today as a result of Claribel’s dedication and willingness to guide us forward even on days when we were struggling. We have used the skills we’ve learned with Claribel in other projects and as a result, we’ve continued to grow as writing partners.
The results? Claribel’s guidance led us through a year-long journey in which we travelled through the woes of editing, the agony of rewrites, the commotion of auditions, the scrambles of producing, and finally into the joys of sitting in the audience as our work came to life in living color and stereo sound. The experience was a gift which we’ll carry with us always.”
PRICE/PACKAGES
You can find our price and packages below. But here is some explanation of our process:
Our relationships begin with a free 30-minute consultation.
MEETINGS
We don’t believe in restricting our meetings to an allotted amount of time. We like to feel unrushed, and we want you to feel unrushed! Our meetings can last anywhere between one to two hours, but we don’t want you thinking about the clock.
PREPARATION
Our Midwives are professional teachers and therefore love a lesson plan. We create personalized agendas for each meeting with our artists—reflecting our past conversations and bringing new offerings and exercises to the table.
FOLLOW UP
After each meeting, your Midwife will email you a summary of the conversation, next steps, and topics for reflection. Your Midwife is available between meetings via email for follow-up questions.
FEEDBACK
Some of our packages include receiving feedback on your work. Your Midwife will review your materials outside of your regular meeting and you can choose whether you would like to receive the feedback verbally or in written form.
COMMUNITY
All of our packages include nine months of the Community Circle Membership which will connect you to the larger Midwives community. This includes the monthly Community Circle Meeting, free monthly workshops, Field Notes, and events.
THREE MEETING PACKAGE
MEETINGS - Three meetings with Midwife working towards goals
PREPARATION - Personalized Midwife preparation and offerings
FOLLOW UP - Reflection and session follow-up emails
$800.00
SIX MEETING PACKAGE
MEETINGS - Six meetings with Midwife working towards goals
PREPARATION - Personalized Midwife preparation and offerings
FOLLOW UP - Reflection and session follow-up emails
$1500.00
THREE MEETING & THREE FEEDBACK PACKAGE
MEETINGS - Three meetings with Midwife working towards goals
PREPARATION - Personalized Midwife preparation and offerings
FOLLOW UP - Reflection and session follow-up emails
FEEDBACK -Three rounds of feedback from Midwife
$1,500.00
SIX MEETING & THREE FEEDBACK PACKAGE
MEETINGS - Six meetings with Midwife working towards goals
PREPARATION - Personalized Midwife preparation and offerings
FOLLOW UP - Reflection and session follow-up emails
FEEDBACK -Three rounds of feedback from Two Midwives
$2,500.00
Fill out our intake form to get started.
