Theatre Company Helps At-Risk Teens

Every year, the Suspects guide 100 young people, ages 12 – 21, from various backgrounds including: gangs, foster homes, juvenile halls and mental-health facilities, through a 12-week intensive theatre program where the teens are taught how to release their destructive, violent behavior, through plays written and performed by the teens themselves. To get more information about the Unusual Suspects Theatre Group, visit www.theunusualsuspects.org.

The program was launched in 1993 and has had remarkable success. “It’s not like a hierarchy where we’re the teachers and they’re the kids. It’s their play. We’re guiding them so it gives them a sense of their own value and importance,” said Sally Fairman, executive director of the Unusual Suspects. The program introduces the teens to acting games and improvisation exercises through which story lines are developed. After the teens have compiled enough material for a story, a professional script supervisor hammers out a draft based on the teens’ own words.

“A lot of our kids are excellent readers and writers, and a lot are illiterate,” Fairman said. But illiteracy doesn’t prevent anyone from participating. One student was unable to read and a volunteer took it upon herself to record the text and play it back for the teen. The teen has since learned to read and write and is now studying theatre in college.

Volunteers must be flexible, interested in working with kids, and able to follow instructions. It is also very important for all volunteers to stay committed for the entire 12-week program. Most of the kids come from difficult environments and are very tentative. Once a child opens up – and most of them do – it’s very important to keep the support system in place. To learn more about programs within the entertainment business in the Los Angeles area, go to www.exploretalent.com or www.auditionsauditions.com.