Our playwriting workshops are built with these convictions:
* Creativity and artistic potential are within every person – the flame of art burns at the core of the self.
* Creativity becomes art when it is guided by craftsmanship.
* Craftsmanship is learned through tenacity, hard work, and a willingness to learn.
* Strength and competence develop as one learns and uses the tools of creative arts.
* A profound learning experience takes place when a young person works one–on–one with a committed, trained, and attuned adult.
* Creating a play entirely in one’s own words requires seeing and feeling another’s point of view, which leads to empathy and understanding.
* It is deeply validating for a young person to have his or her work taken seriously by professional actors.
* When a young person’s play is skillfully brought to life, discovery and transformation take place: author and audience see themselves and each other in a new light.

A three-week residency brings young people together with coaches from the Portland performing arts community. Students work one-on-one with coaches, learning and honing the tools for creating a play.

Each play in its entirety springs solely from the mind, feelings and heart of the young writer. At the end of the workshop, professional actors perform a staged reading of the plays before a live audience. This performance – the culmination of three weeks’ work – is a collaborative event involving author, actors and audience. The young writers glow with well-deserved pride as they witness their work being brought to life.