The youth respondent method

In her article The Once and Future Audience: Dramaturgy and Children’s Theatre, Suzan Zeder writes, “Dramaturgs in increasing numbers find themselves coming out of the library and rehearsal hall and into the classroom.” ¹ More and more dramaturgs, in addition to writers, directors, and educators, many of whom have a particular interest in Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA), have immersed themselves in classrooms working directly with students in the development of plays and musicals through a process I describe as the youth respondent method: artists and/or producers involve children and/or young adults through planned theatre activities or discussions, with the objective of answering specific questions about the development of the work and collect feedback to improve the text or further the production. This pluralistic practice grants agency to the target audience, while informing the creators of the possibilities of the play and answering challenging questions regarding the developing piece. The spring 2008 Adventure Stage Chicago (ASC), in association with the Chicago Humanities Festival, produced the world premiere of noted playwright José Cruz González’s play The Blue House for young audiences. Cruz González extensively employed the youth respondent method in this play’s early development.