SUMMER THEATRE ENSEMBLE MAKES TIME TO TOUR IT'S MY TIME NOW!

     IT'S MY TIME NOW, the new musical written by the Teens Together Playwriting Ensemble, will tour parks, schools, and community centers this summer. "I'm looking forward to new audiences seeing and experiencing our performance and discussions," said Alyssa Sorresso, Teens Together Program Manager. "Touring will also present the ensemble with some different challenges. Ensemble members will need to adjust quickly to each location and audience. They will be the visitors this summer. "
     IT'S MY TIME NOW, explores the causes and long- term effects of school violence on teens. The play demonstrates the effects stereotypes of different social classes play in creating tension and violence within changing neighborhoods.
     Through a process of shared storytelling and writing, the teens discovered that neighborhood schools and violence are, for them, an integral part of the tale of changing neighborhoods and displacement. They also discovered that many of the ensemble members were tangentially and personally connected to an incident in which several CPS students were shot on a CTA bus in the spring of 2007.
     The Playwriting Ensemble included Cabrini-Green residents. Following a tour of the neighbor-hood, ensemble members interviewed current and previous residents of the public housing project.