Partners

Storycatchers Theatre is able to deliver its programs to a broad constituency of incarcerated and otherwise marginalized youth thanks to the company's many program partners.

For Residential Programs Serving Incarcerated or Court-Involved Youth:

Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center
Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (CCJTDC) provides safe, temporary secure housing for youth between the ages of 10 and 16 with pending legal action in the Cook County Courts in addition to youth who transfer from Juvenile Court jurisdiction to Criminal Court. CCJTDC is dedicated to providing its youth with leadership, structured care, and supervision through a balanced approach of creative programming and services that teach responsibility, accountability, and sensitivity. Storycatchers Theatre began developing its residential program model in partnership with CCJTDC in 1990.

Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice
The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (IDJJ) is committed to the preservation of public safety by reducing recidivism. Understanding that youth have different needs than adults, the IDJJ provides individualized services from by qualified staff to help these youth develop the skills they need to become productive citizens. The IDJJ has partnered with Storycatchers since 2002 to provide gender-specific programs serving incarcerated adolescents at Illinois Youth Centers in Warrenville and Chicago.

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is a musical force in Chicago and around the world. When world-renowned conductor Riccardo Muti accepted the position of CSO Music Director, he expressed a desire to expand the CSO outreach work into youth prisons. An exploratory meeting between CSO and Storycatchers staff resulted in a partnership that integrates CSO teaching artists into the Fabulous Females program. In Fall 2010, Muti and the internationally renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma will provide intimate concert/workshops for the girls incarcerated at IYC-Warrenville.

For the Teens Together Programs Serving High School Students throughout Chicago:

Columbia College Chicago Fiction Writing Department
Columbia College Chicago's Fiction Writing Department is renowned for its Story Workshop method, which dovetails neatly with the Storycatchers process of creating original musical theatre from personal stories. Through collaborative writing workshops, the Teens Together program combines Storycatchers' storytelling, writing and performance methods with the Story Workshop® methods to assist teens in creating an original musical theatre script, which Storycatchers produces with the Teens Together Summer Theatre Ensemble.

Chicago Park District
A 2002 request from the Chicago Park District (CPD) for a program addressing unmet needs in the West Pullman Park led to a unique partnership between CPD and Storycatchers. Thanks to this ongoing, cooperative relationship, Storycatchers is able to tour the Teens Together Summer Theatre Ensemble to parks throughout Chicago, with an emphasis on the near north and far south sides.

Windows of Opportunity, the Nonprofit Affiliate of the Chicago Housing Authority
A 2008 request from the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) for a program that would help public housing families address the impact of changing communities and involuntary relocation upon youth resulted in the incorporation of Windows of Opportunity, the nonprofit affiliate of the CHA, as a third institutional partner in the Teens Together program. Thanks to this relationship, Teens Together gained a new, centrally located anchor site at St. Matthew Church on the border of Old Town and the Cabrini-Green community. Windows of Opportunity, its funding partner Holsten Human Capital Development, and Storycatchers work together to provide opportunities for participation to at-risk youth in public housing communities throughout Chicago.