Tag: Creative Youth Development

Episode 16: Youth Finding a Voice, Finding a Stage

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Through Barrington Stage Company’s creative youth development program, Playwright Mentoring Project, theatre is used as a catalyst to help under-served youth learn skills to aid them in developing positive self-images. Artistic Director Julie Boyd speaks to the cathartic nature of this work and to how their programs in education and theatre-making interweave.

Julianne BoydJulianne Boyd co-founded the Barrington Stage Company (BSC) in January 1995. She has directed many productions at BSC, including the world premieres of Mark St. Germain’s Dancing Lessons, Dr. Ruth, All the Way, and Best of Enemies. She also directed the critically acclaimed productions of An Enemy of the People, Much Ado About Nothing, The Crucible, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, A Streetcar Named Desire, West Side Story, Follies, The Game, Mack and Mabel, Cyrano de Bergerac, and The Importance of Being Earnest. In 1997 she directed BSC’s smash hit production of Cabaret, which won six Boston Theatre Critics Awards and transferred to the Hasty Pudding Theatre in Cambridge for an extended run.
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Episode 14: A Musical Instrument Lending Library

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The Johnson String Project is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to provide high-quality instruments to children who live in underserved communities and who are participating in El-Sistema-inspired programs in Massachusetts. Carol Johnson, Founder and President, talks about the creation of their musical instrument lending library and the public/private partnership behind it.

Carol JohnsonCarol Johnson is a co-founder of Johnson String Instrument. Founded in Newton, MA in 1976, JSI’s core belief is that everyone is equal and deserves access to quality instruments. This philosophy is why teachers have been turning to Johnson for support for almost 40 years. When she began to ask how she could further serve her community in Massachusetts, she found her answer in the creation of The Johnson String Project.
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Episode 7: Pioneering Youth Entrepreneurship & Sustainability

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Artists For Humanity (AFH) was founded 25 years ago by Susan Rodgerson with a seemingly simple idea: Engaging urban young people in collaborative art making gives them a voice in the arts – and business – community. Rodgerson describes the evolution of AFH’s creative jobs program, which now employs 300 kids annually and earned just under $1.5 million last year. Committed to a sustainable future, Rodgerson also shares expansion plans for the EpiCenter, AFH’s building and first Platinum LEED building in Boston.

Susan RodgersonSusan Rodgerson is the founding Executive/Artistic Director of Artists For Humanity (AFH), a nonprofit youth development organization that provides productive and life-changing opportunities for young people through paid employment in art and design. In 25 years, AFH has become the largest onsite employer of Boston teens. Its program model has received multiple honors and has been replicated internationally.

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Episode 6: Creating Great Human Beings, One Song at a Time

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At Boston Children’s Chorus (BCC) music is a catalyst to create social change. BCC Artistic Director Dr. Anthony Trecek-King recounts how kids from over 120 different zip codes come to the Chorus to learn about music, and are also given time to discuss and learn about their differences and how they can work together to become a more creative and cohesive community.

Anthony Trecek-KingDr. Anthony Trecek-King is the Artistic Director of the award-winning Boston Children’s Chorus (BCC). Under his direction the Chorus has earned a reputation as an ensemble of high distinction and in 2013 received the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program award from the White House. Dr. Trecek-King’s performances have been heralded as possessing a “surprising range of dynamics and depth of expression.” Continue reading “Episode 6: Creating Great Human Beings, One Song at a Time”