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Finding Freedom: Writes of Spring 2016
By Julie Woods-Robinson and Michelle LoRicco
A single-parent family signs up to host a Syrian refugee and struggles with their various ideas of the true meaning of freedom.
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Co-adapted from the writings of sixty Central Florida youth as the culminating event of Writes of Spring 2016. Writes of Spring, a partnership program between Orlando Repertory Theatre and the University of Central Florida, is a unique writing competition in which playwrights create an original play using the words and ideas of K-12th-grade students. Finding Freedom was produced at Orlando Repertory Theatre.
Articles
“A Review of Theatre, Teens, Sex Ed: Are We There Yet? By Jan Selman and Jane Heather,” Youth Theatre Journal, Vol. 30, Issue 1, 2016
by Julie Woods-Robinson
Abstract: “Sexuality education should be as close to good sex as possible,” says playwright Jane Heather about her guiding principles when considering what makes great Sex Ed. She says that it should occur in “close proximity”—no more impersonal films in dark rooms; the students and instructors should have a relationship of “trust and respect;” and finally, there should be lots of chances to “laugh…talk, listen, try, fail, change your mind, [and] risk” (57). Heather is primarily commenting on the method in which sexual education is presented to high school students in Canada, and she posits that participatory theatre, in this case her play Are We There Yet?, can help students sift through emotionally sensitive topics like sex, sexual health, and consent.