Elizabeth Youth Theater Ensemble

Established in 2016, The Elizabeth Youth Theater Ensemble’s mission is centered upon strengthening the voices of young artists. Utilizing theater-arts based curricula, EYTE provides creative learning opportunities for youth of city and global majorities where they gain experiences that empower self and community.

The Elizabeth Youth Theater Ensemble structures its programs with an understanding of the following:

• Discipline is vital to the success of an artist.
• The arts help increase the social capital of economically disadvantaged students.
• Sustained involvement in theatre arts encourages improvement in the reading proficiency of high school students with low socio-economic status.

Their signature program, Walking the Beat, is a creative writing, theater, and multi-media workshop for students grades 9-12 and local police officers, designed to establish a groundwork for conversation and create real, achievable actions for specific communities across the country. The work includes, but is not limited to, the themes of:

• Spiritual grounding, self-care, restorative practice
• The history of policing
• The Ferguson Moment
• Police reforms and alternative emergency response systems
• Abolition (Schools/Prisons/Police) – advocacy and art
• Dream building