Theater for the Very Young: Children as Co-Collaborators of Creative Experience

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 1:45 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Documentation, Collective Memory, and Agency: The Power of Collaborative Theatre Across the Lifespan (Table 1)

Abstract

This study explores a community-research partnership focused on designing, developing, and assessing imaginative performances (music, story, movement) for young children (ages 2-6) and their families. Known as Theater for the Very Young (TVY), this programming employs a design-based, child-focused method of devised theater. The study examined the importance of considering children’s interests, fears, developmental stages, and capabilities in fostering creative play. Findings show that children can effectively communicate their creative ideas and develop agency in immersive performances through child-initiated play and attentive facilitation. The TVY devising methodology also provides insights for learning science and design-based research methodologies that emphasize children's agency, creativity, and embodiment.

Authors

• Jaclyn Lauren Dudek, University of Kansas

• Josh Hayes, University of Kansas

• Sarah AlRasheed, University of Kansas

• Liyan Yang, University of Kansas