“The object of art is to give life a shape.”
~ William Shakespeare
Invictus Theatre Company truly believes that art can make the world a better place. We are committed to outreach programs that bring the Chicago community together and create safe places for self-expression. The world we live in is ever-evolving, which means our programs are too. Learn more about our current outreach programs below, and if you have an idea for a program or a group who might benefit from working with us please contact us here.
Support our outreach programs with a gift here.
Outreach Programs
Lawrence hall
Invictus Theatre Company was proud to remain local in continuing their outreach work by partnering with Lawrence Hall, a community-based service agency housing and educating at-risk youth also located in the 48th Ward of the city of Chicago. In January 2022, Invictus Outreach began a new partnership which included a 12-week youth Shakespeare Education program. In collaboration with the Lawrence Hall English Department, ITC was inserted into the curriculum, transforming the traditional classroom approach to a theatrical experience. The four-month program consisted of group activities, theater games and physical warm ups, building trust and fostering a sense of ensemble and community for the participants. The Lawrence Hall youth ensemble and ITC rehearsed and performed an abridged Shakespearean production of Romeo and Juliet wherein the students experienced an abbreviated version of a professional theater production process. Our Lawrence Hall partnership will continue to the Fall of 2022.
YOUTH LEADER PROGRAM
Invictus’s Youth Leader program provides additional opportunities for youth from our Shakespeare in the Courts program to becoming involved in Invictus’s MainStage productions. Youth are paired with an Invictus Theatre Company mentor, and attend rehearsals, production meetings, and performances of ITC productions where they learn about directing, acting, stage management, and different areas of design as we produce a professional performance. Our Youth Leaders participate fully in the process as understudies and rehearsal assistants. Our inaugural Youth Leader program coincided with our 2020 production of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. Invictus Theatre Company provides transportation to and from rehearsals and performances and works to actively break down systemic barriers that would typically deter our youth from participating in our programs.
Our Lawrence Hall programming would not be possible without the generous support of Toyota Financial Savings Bank.
Shakespeare in the Courts Chicago
Shakespeare in the Courts Chicago is a program that works on Shakespeare scripts with adolescents in the Cook County justice system for six weeks and ends with a final performance for the participants' friends, family, judges, and probation officers.
Our goal is to give our Shakespeare in the Courts ensemble an inclusive, positive, and consistent experience. Transportation is provided to and from the rehearsal and performance spaces, and in addition to Invictus educators running the rehearsals, professional designers work with our ensemble to provide performance elements such as costumes and props. Please consider supporting our outreach programs with a gift here.
Shakespeare (and more) in the Classroom
Invictus Theatre Company partners with schools and community organizations to offer workshops, classes, and performance opportunities to supplement and enrich classroom curriculums. Workshops are customized based on our partner organization’s goals and needs. Past workshops have been held with partners such as Lawrence Hall, North Park University, and Lycee Francais Chicago.
Shakespeare in the Courts and youth leader program Origins
On our first day of Shakespeare in the Courts Chicago, in July of 2018, we had five participants who had never heard of Shakespeare. By the end of the session, they were all performing the prologue from Romeo and Juliet.
This program was created through the help of the City of Chicago's 2018 Year of Creative Youth Chicago.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) designated 2018 as the “Year of Creative Youth” with a new Creative Youth Festival across the Millennium Park Campus (September 22, 2018), performance opportunities for teens at many City of Chicago festivals and partner events, cultural grants and convenings for youth arts organizations, a marketing campaign and more—representing an over $2 million investment by the City of Chicago.
Our second year of Shakespeare in the Courts coincided with our 2019/20 season. Our Shakespeare in the Courts youth ensemble met over the Summer 2019, with a culminating performance of The Tempest for family, friends, community members, judges, and probation officers. Half of our SitC youth ensemble were youth who had also joined us for the previous summer. We wanted to find a way to engage and support our youth once the summer session had concluded, which lead to the creation of our Youth Leader program.
Interested in learning more about our Outreach programs? Contact us here.