Community Theater Green Room Discussion Board: Youth Theatre

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   Okay this is a long post, so sorry in advance about the length.
I have a question for theatres that have youth/children's theatre programs.  What is the relationship between the youth program and regular adult program?

Our current situation has become a bit problematic.  Our children's theatre is run by a separate board that hires their own directors, etc.  They only produce one show a year and some occasional workshops, but use our facility and equipment during the summer when we have some down time.  They were formed about 20 years ago as an off-shoot of our organization, but our board and staff do not work on their projects.  They receive no funding from us and we do not charge them rent for use of the building - they pay the utility bills when they're here.

The problem we've been encountering is that many people do not make the distinction between the two programs.  They assume since the show is in our space it's one of our productions.  That leads to another concern which is over the last several years we have perceived a sharp drop in the quality of the children's program, and they have been struggling to find volunteers to do various production jobs.  There has also been a large decrease in the number of students in the program.

Our board wants to help find a solution to these problems but aren't exactly sure what the next step should be.  We have discussed fully taking over the program ourselves but met resistance from their board and members of our own board concerned about volunteer burnout.  We feel it is important to have a strong theatre educational program in the community and have begun doing some programs ourselves taking up the perceived slack from the children's program.

So like I said earlier I'm curious how other programs with youth theatres function.  We are a relatively small theatre, in a community of 13,000 in Nebraska.  Any thoughts are appreciated.

Author	Message
75director Celebrity Joined: 8/19/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 122	Topic: Youth Theatre Posted: 8/26/05 at 12:42pm
	Okay this is a long post, so sorry in advance about the length. I have a question for theatres that have youth/children's theatre programs. What is the relationship between the youth program and regular adult program? Our current situation has become a bit problematic. Our children's theatre is run by a separate board that hires their own directors, etc. They only produce one show a year and some occasional workshops, but use our facility and equipment during the summer when we have some down time. They were formed about 20 years ago as an off-shoot of our organization, but our board and staff do not work on their projects. They receive no funding from us and we do not charge them rent for use of the building - they pay the utility bills when they're here. The problem we've been encountering is that many people do not make the distinction between the two programs. They assume since the show is in our space it's one of our productions. That leads to another concern which is over the last several years we have perceived a sharp drop in the quality of the children's program, and they have been struggling to find volunteers to do various production jobs. There has also been a large decrease in the number of students in the program. Our board wants to help find a solution to these problems but aren't exactly sure what the next step should be. We have discussed fully taking over the program ourselves but met resistance from their board and members of our own board concerned about volunteer burnout. We feel it is important to have a strong theatre educational program in the community and have begun doing some programs ourselves taking up the perceived slack from the children's program. So like I said earlier I'm curious how other programs with youth theatres function. We are a relatively small theatre, in a community of 13,000 in Nebraska. Any thoughts are appreciated.

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Thespian_4_ever Lead Joined: 9/16/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 43	Posted: 3/18/06 at 3:42pm
	Well at my local CT we have 2 theatres (we're at an old school where the gym is a Children's Stage and the Mainstage is a different theatre.) One way would to call it an "Academy" (kids) "Mainstage" (Adults)...
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MartyW Celebrity Joined: 2/02/04 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 555	Posted: 4/11/06 at 8:56am
	75, I was wondering if you had any side line responses to this post... I have a post out looking for advise, plans, templates etc for starting a youth theater program in our group. I know the circumstances aren't the same, but I'm digging for bones here.... Any help, always appreciated..
	Marty W "Till next we trod the boards.."
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DeeC Walk-On Joined: 3/29/06 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 0	Posted: 4/25/06 at 11:10am
	It's a tough call in this case but - go back to your mission statement - what does it say - are you properly representing it/your theater to the public? If you as a main board truly feel they are not representing your theater properly then you need to make a change - uncomfortable or not - reputation is something that takes years to rebuild and you can't afford to be loosing it with your younger genreation (your future patrons/ your feeder program) Re-evaluate their offered classes/programs within your board - have a meeting with their board on the changes you see ness. if they are unwilling to work with you on this - make sure you have decided as a board prior to the meeting as to what your next step will be. Perhaps it is time to either get a percentage of their income or ask for a flat fee for theater usage - in my experience - if money is involved the quality has to step up to the plate. Or maybe you should drop the program for a year - and put it up for application under new guidlines or take upon you rmain board - the year after.
	Dee
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DeeC Walk-On Joined: 3/29/06 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 0	Posted: 4/25/06 at 11:11am
	Marty - where are you from? Maybe i can help - I have several youth programs but need to watch exclusivity. DeeC
	Dee
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MartyW Celebrity Joined: 2/02/04 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 555	Posted: 4/25/06 at 2:52pm
	Hey DeeC.... If your in DC we are several hundereds of miles apart... We are in Findlay Ohio... Any help at all is more than a little welcome...
	Marty W "Till next we trod the boards.."
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suzecue1 Star Joined: 9/19/06 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 90	Posted: 9/28/06 at 3:02pm
	Hi all, I know this is an old post, but I just joined the group and feel I may have something to offer. I am the Director / Co-ordinator for a very successful Chilldren's Theatre Workshop. The workshop itself has been around for 25 years, I have been involved for the last 10 years. We involve up to 250 kids per summer, and I have about 30 staff. We are in a small midwestern town of about 8,000. Anyway, if I can help you with anything, or if you have specific questions, just let me know. Sue
	Sue ***** So many hats.....so few heads!
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Ryan Prince Walk-On Joined: 10/18/06 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 0	Posted: 10/18/06 at 12:34pm
	Hi everyone, I have been working for a nonprofit professional theater company in a small town in Creede, Co. The theater has been around for 40+ years and is ready for a large capitol campaign to build new facilities and grow all of its programming. I along with two other individuals am heading up the transformation of the education wing. The education wing presently produces one original play where local high school students can participate in all aspects of production and performance free of charge. The show incorporates acting, movement, mask work, puppetry, and music to foster a unique learning experience for the performers as well as the audience. The education wing also hosts several week long or shorter theater camps, produces a fall touring show, and provides lectures and educational materials to the patrons of the professional main stage shows. Currently the theater can only support a summer season, tourism is almost non existent in the winter. However I see lots of opportunities for the education wing to extend our programming into the schools throughout the whole year. I would love to find some models for in school residencies as well as curriculum building and teacher training programs that have been successful. Remember we are in a very rural part of Colorado and would have to travel quite a distance to reach the number of kids to justify a program like this. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Ryan Prince
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Nanette Celebrity Joined: 8/01/06 Online Status: Offline Posts: 399	Posted: 10/18/06 at 2:38pm
	Ryan, Look into Florida Studio Theatre in Sarasota, FL. They have a playwriting contest/program that they take into schools around the state. The information is on the sidebar under WRITE A PLAY/In the Schools. Here's their link: www.fst2000.org Hope it helps! :o)
	In a world of margarine, be butter!
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Running Your Theater
Community Theater Green Room Discussion Board :Theater Administration :Running Your Theater

Topic: Youth Theatre( Topic Closed)