Recent Essays

The creation of Our City, a performance night based in civic duties, reminds us to keep the connection of art and civic life as they both feed each other.

Catherine Treischmann's Parenting & Playwriting series continues with a question about new play development: when you're offered out-of-town production and development oppurtunities, what do you do when you're the primary caregiver to small children?

Sarah Gubbins reflects on the premiere of her play fml, its licensing, and the idea that the line between theater for young audiences and mainstream theater isn't so distinct after all.

Jamie Gahlon has asked theater artists from around the country to talk about their personal search for an artistic home. Ashley Forman continues this series.

Join us for our second #WeeklyHowl featuring the topic of "Designers in New Play Development and Production!"

Barry Kornhauser argues for the importance of a new brand of TYA: theater for babies.

Steven Dietz asks what the perfect audience for a play would look like.

Cheryl West tells of her own experience writing theatre for young audiences surrounding the topic of race, and how children are a lot more well-equipped to process difficult topics than we think they are. Are we holding children back by trying to censor programming "for their own good?"

Gabriel Jason Dean writes about TYA, and what themes we do and do not allow children to experience onstage. But when is sheltering and censoring more of a burden than a benefit for young theatregoers?

Under the idea that children’s stories are for all ages, Finegan Kruckemeyer expresses the need for stories to show the complexities of emotions that the youth experience.