Realizing the power of the theatrical event to bring about extraordinary communion between audience and performer is at the core of Freehold's mission. Our Engaged Theatre program has developed partnerships with organizations that represent culturally under-served populations in our larger community. We tour to these unique populations with performances and workshops. The benefits are two-fold:

• These partnerships expose our actors to individuals living through extraordinary circumstances, and respect for the humanity of the characters they create and to perform with greater truth and generosity.
• We have experienced that engagement in the creative process empowers the voices and imaginations of participants and builds trust within the communities.

We also facilitate an annual residency at Washington Corrections Center for Women, in which we enable the participants to write, direct, rehearse, and perform their own show in a five-month period.

Testimonials

"Having an outdoor play brought a sense of community and connectedness to a community which has been rife with isolation and alienation from one's neighbors. Also, your workshop for the children was brilliant. [...] the children were terribly shy at first, but in no time, they began to open up and participate because of the safe, approachable, and fun learning environment you created."
Anna Maria Gutierrez, New Futures

"Today you guys have helped me step into a world so unknown to me – my life ... Thank you. [...] when you're able to connect with me – my energy – whether it be my pain or my laughter you guys are there with me and I gain more confidence in myself – and now I must tell you that all of you have a permanent 'part' in my life."
Inmate at WCCW

"I learned that I can work with and appreciate even people that I do not like!"
Inmate at WCCW

" ... As a woman who has worked as a practitioner of the healing arts for thirty years, I can say unequivocally, this is good medicine – for everyone involved ... I sat in the audience with the inmates, and was moved by their responses. The stories enacted before them were their own, presented in the voice of the Hero. As an archetypal psychologist, I must say that this is as clearly an alchemical process as anything I have seen in my consulting room. The word transformation has been bandied about until it has very little meaning. It found its true tenor in the gym at Purdy last night. What hit the stage was a talented and vibrant troupe ... bringing into the light, the gold of the stories once hidden in the darkness of repression, repudiation, and shame. I have never seen anything like it."
George McGrath Callan, Ph.D

"The power of ideas and relevant themes, conveyed through poetry and live theater, helps to ease the physical and emotional burden of a lengthy and painful recovery."
Peggy Weiss, Art Program Coordinator, Harborview Medical Center

"The power of the experience was very interesting. For the patients it was therapeutic and for the staff, very insightful."
Pam Smith, Manager Rehabilitation, Harborview Medical Center