THE LIGHT

THE LIGHT YOUTH 2021 - 2022

The Light is the debut of our youth education program, focused on outstanding youth artists and change-makers of exceptional message, skill and craft who are eager to be immersed in a deep artistic and scholarly mentorship as part of a year-long, paid creation and performance mentorship program.

BECOME A MEMBER

PERFORMANCE DETAILS

LOCATIONS

Thursday, August 19 at 6 pm (CST) Douglass Park, 1401 S. Sacramento Dr. Chicago, IL 60623

Friday, August 20 at 5 pm (CST)

LaFollette Park, 1333 N. Laramie Ave.

Chicago, IL 60651

Saturday, August 21 at 5 pm (CST)

Hamilton Park, 513 W. 72nd St.

Chicago, IL 60621

Stay tuned for upcoming events!

COST

Free

PARTIALLY SUPPORTED BY

VIDEOS

ENSEMBLE CLASS OF 2021 - 2022

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PHALLON PIERCE

Identical twins Phallon and Kyra Pierce, aka The Pierce Twins, are actors, dancers, athletes, models, motivational speakers and activists. They currently have a bill on the Illinois House Floor, called The Pierce Twins Law, that would ensure K-12 curriculums throughout the state of Illinois will include books written by diverse authors. They are freshmen at Bolingbrook High School and live in Naperville. Naturally, their social justice focus is diversifying school reading curriculums.

KYRA PIERCE

Identical twins Phallon and Kyra Pierce, aka The Pierce Twins, are actors, dancers, athletes, models, motivational speakers and activists. They currently have a bill on the Illinois House Floor, called The Pierce Twins Law, that would ensure K-12 curriculums throughout the state of Illinois will include books written by diverse authors. They are freshmen at Bolingbrook High School and live in Naperville. Naturally, their social justice focus is diversifying school reading curriculums.

NATE BUESCHER

A talented young TV and stage actor, singer and dancer, and a member of the Chicago Bulls Bulls Kidz for five years. He is a freshman at Lincoln Park High School and lives in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Nate’s social justice focus is supporting Black Lives Matter.

MARCUS JACKSON

A child of educators who has been acting since age five, starting with plays at his church before signing with an agent and since acting in a number of TV shows. He lives with his family on the South side of Chicago and is a senior at Lindblom Math and Science Academy. Marcus’s social justice focus is community empathy.

JOY SMITH

Mentored Ella Rae

ELLA RAE

Ella Rae has been singing since she can remember, and acting since the age of six. She participated in Collaboraction’s Peacemakers Youth Ensemble, and was named a Rising Star of Chicago by the City of Chicago in 2019. She is a freshman at Columbia College Chicago and lives in Wicker Park. Ella Rae’s social justice focus is intersectionality and abuse.

CAROLYNN HOERDEMANN

Mentored Ava Lynn

AVA LYNN TRPESKI

Born with a natural talent for dance, Ava first fell in love with performing on stage at the age of four at her home church. Currently, she spends a great deal of time training in ballet, modern and various other forms of dance. She is a sophomore at Connections Academy and lives in Crown Heights, Indiana. Because of her own experiences, Ava’s social justice focus is body positivity and confronting the stigma of what a dancer should look like.

DANA ANDERSON

Mentored the Pierce twins

ANTHONY MOSLEY

“This is the most healing form of activism that I have seen in my life. This is the future. This is all of our future. This is the future of Chicago's talent."

– GQ of The Q Brothers

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

Requirements: Must be age 21 or under to submit
Submission Deadline: May 20, 2022, at 11:59 pm (CST)
Selection Process: Artists will be selected and notified by June 25, 2022.

2022 Performances: August 2022

Illuminating Exceptional Chicago Youth Artivists

Collaboraction' youth program is currently taking submission for both Youth Art-Activist

PERFORMERS AND PRODUCTION DESIGN/TECH

For the second year of this innovative program that cultivates youth artist-activists, Collaboraction will select a diverse group of 5 youth artists-activists who create and perform their original material, as well, as a cohort of Chicago youth interested in developing their skills and experience with live production tech and light, sound, video, costumes, and scenic design.

The Light Performance Ensemble will be paired with a professional artistic mentor and the youth will develop an original solo performance of 7 minutes or less that showcases their artistic vision and activist voice. These pieces will tour Hamilton Park (Englewood), Douglass Park (Lawndale), and Lafollette Park (Austin) as a part of the Chicago Park District’s Nights Out in the Parks in late August.

The program starts July 2022 and the Light Production Design/Tech Team will be taught the basics of production and design and work as apprentices on the Chicago Park District’s Nights Out in the Parks in late August.

The Light Performance Ensemble and Production/Design Team will also have access to performance and training opportunities throughout the year.

This program is partially supported by a grant

from the Illinois Arts Council Agency

All youth will be paid $18/hr for all rehearsal, performance and production time.

Beyond this scheduled tour, the Light performance artists will each make a video of their performance and be booked for additional public performances, appearances, collaborations, and activations throughout the year. Here is the link to the videos from the 2021 Light Ensemble

We are interested in a diverse pool of artists that reflect the whole make-up of Chicago. Each performance will conclude with a Crucial Conversation around the themes of the performances. Each show is supported by an entire production team and artist stipends in line with our Equitable Pay For All Policy.

For performers, we are open to numerous performance styles, including:

• Storytelling/Theatre

• Spoken Word

• Dance

• Music

For Production/Design, we are open to all levels of experience and areas of interest.

TO APPLY: FILL OUT THE SUBMISSION FORM AND SUBMIT A VIDEO SAMPLE AND TELL US ABOUT THE MESSAGE YOU SEEK TO PUT OUT INTO THE WORLD TO CULTIVATE POSITIVE SOCIAL CHANGE

PERFORMERS SUBMISSION

PRODUCTION DESIGN/TECH SUBMISSION

2022-2023 SCHEDULE

Now - June 1

July 1

July 1 - August 1

August 1 - 15

August 19, 20 & 21

August 22 - December

October - November

January - June

Youth are recruited to submit for a virtual audition

Selected youth and mentors are announced with a press release and video

Mentors lead youth through an overview of the creative process, theatre for social change methodology, and generative work processes

Youth create and stage their solo piece with their mentor

Performances tour as a part of the Night Out in the Parks at Hamilton Park in Englewood, LaFollette Park in Austin, and Douglass Park in Lawndale

Youth solo performances available for additional touring dates and locations

Videos are made of each youth solo performance & released at a premiere event

The youth crew is booked for additional public performances, appearances, collaborations, and activations

THE LIGHT

THE LIGHT YOUTH 2021 - 2022

PERFORMANCE DETAILS

LOCATIONS

COST

SPONSORED BY

PARTIALLY SUPPORTED BY

VIDEOS

The Light Full Documentary

Ava Lynn - The Light: Artist Spotlight

Nate Buescher - The Light: Artist Spotlight

Phallon & Kyra Pierce - The Light: Artist Spotlight

Ella Rae - The Light: Artist Spotlight

Marcus Jackson - The Light: Artist Spotlight

Where’s June by June

Today by Christian Aguilar

ENSEMBLE CLASS OF 2021 - 2022

“This is the most healing form of activism that I have seen in my life. This is the future. This is all of our future. This is the future of Chicago's talent."

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

2022-2023 SCHEDULE

SHOW & EVENT ANNOUNCEMENTS

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