Lyric Stage’s current Community Programs include theatre education initiatives primarily for students in grades 6-12. These programs emphasize relationship-building and the creative process, and provide opportunities for students to develop their artistic skills by uniting them with professional theatre-makers from the Boston area.
Research has demonstrated the positive impacts of the arts on youth. Lyric Stage’s Community Programs introduce students to the power of theatrical storytelling and offer pathways into the creative economy.
Education Programs made possible in part by:
Lyric Back Stage introduces middle and high school students to careers in theatrical design and production. Students take a field trip to the theatre, learn about the design and production process from professionals in lighting, costumes, sound, and props, and then see a performance of a one-act play commissioned specifically for their age group.
In Lyric First Page, young playwrights in grades 6-12 participate in a professional playwriting process by seeing their original 10-minute plays presented as staged readings by local directors and actors at the Lyric First Page Festival. Free in-school workshops are available to jumpstart the writing process.
City Stage
The City Stage program is designed to expose students at all levels of theater as a part of their regular curriculum. City Stage is based on the Performance Cycle, created by the Arts Literacy Project at Brown University, and engages students in creative drama, scripting, and acting-out of a narrative that enable them to analyze, interpret, and deeply experience plays, poetry, memoirs, and fiction. Through City Stage, students develop theatre and language arts skills and create art in alignment with state curriculum standards. We offer a variety of versions of City Stage to elementary, middle, and high schools in Boston.
Approximately 84% of the children reached through City Stage are from low-and moderate-income families. Research demonstrates te positive impacts of the arts on low-income neighborhoods, and the Lyric Stage is devoted to supporting these communities.
The study and practice of theatrical art provides young people with social capital and establishes a number of soft skills essential for success. Chief among these are problem-solving, teamwork, written and verbal communication, ability to analyze text, self-confidence, and public speaking.
Students served through the Boston Public School system are: 45% Black, 32% White, 17% Hispanic, 4% Asian, and 3% Other.
Funded in part by Boston Public Schools (BPS) Arts Expansion, a multi-year effort focusing on access, equity, and quality arts learning for BPS students. The BPS Arts Expansion Fund, managed by EdVestors, is supported by the Barr Foundation, The Boston Foundation, Katie and Paul Buttenwieser, The Klarman Family Foundation, Linde Family Foundation, and other foundations and individuals. BPS Arts Expansion is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
