Rosei Rocha-Judd (front) and other members of the Young Women’s Theatre Collective work on a performance piece for the troupe’s show this weekend at the WOW Hall.
Scott Barnett Emerald
Established in
1996, the Young
Women’s Theatre
Collective
provides a forum
for young
women to
express and
share their
hopes, dreams
and fears
By Sara Jarrett
Oregon Daily Emerald
Youth doesn’t have to equal ignorance, nor does
it necessarily mean a lack of depth. Young women
in particular deal with these stereotypes on a daily
basis, when trying to prove themselves as intelli
gent, strong members of society.
Thanks to pop culture and the media, the door
seems to shut louder and harder on those who are
trying to be taken seriously when girls like Brit
ney Spears are made into superstars.
The Young Women’s Theatre Collective, a local
group of girls ranging in age from 13 to 19, are on a
mission to break those social barriers....
The group performs Friday and Satur
day night at the WOW Hall, 291 W.
Eighth Ave., with both shows beginning
at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $5-15, on a
sliding scale.
While helping each other embody and
celebrate the traits that make each mem
ber unique, the collective “hopefully
communicates to the community about
teens — their fears, hopes, and dreams,”
says Hannah Fox, the troupe’s director
since she founded it in 1996. In the
process, the experience becomes an
emotional awakening that members say
would have otherwise been unattain
able.
Performing in public is one of the
most rewarding aspect of being involved
with the YWTC, members agree.
Even the most emotionally stable per
son who’s able to deal with her feelings
through journal writing or talking with
Mends can still benefit from the experience. Shar
ing these quests with an audience seems to affirm
the exploration of issues and themes, such as sex
ual violation, parental divorce, self-confidence, al
coholism, grades, voices in your head, the Holo
caust, the war against fat and even the high school
bathroom environment.
“The beauty of performance is being able to
move through the emotional process in a con
structive way,” Shanti Michaels, 18, said. “It
forces me to organize my emotional life.”
The process focuses on self-discovery, Fox said.
The girls share stories of their lives and discover
themselves through their art, and Fox remains
dedicated to providing a framework for the girls
while leaving plenty of room for experimentation.
“We come here and say whatever we want,”
says Tinka Standke, a 17-year-old exchange stu
dent from Germany.
Along the way, each group member learns
about group interaction as well.
One week before their WOW Hall performance
show the YWTC chatted after rehearsal about cos
tumes. Fox turned over the decision-making
process to the young women, with only minor
stipulations: The shirts must have cap sleeves,
everyone must wear the same color and everyone
is responsible for blapk pfints, style unimportant.
Everyone offered an opinion. The color choic
es ranged from green, orange and purple — defi
nitely not red. White looks too formal, they all
agreed.
Finally, a tentative agreement was made on the
plum color of a sweatshirt worn by one member.
Since this is an on-going discovery process, who
knows what the group will actually wear?
On the surface, thi6 particular conversation
Several members of the YWTC are shown here during a recent rehearsal. Each year
there is an audition process to replace members who leave the group.
{Constant Revolution!
Who: The Young Womens’ Theatre Collective
When: Friday and Saturday, Jam 14 and 15
Where: WOW Hall, corner of 8th and Lincoln
Price: $5 to $15 sliding scale
might seem superfluous, but to a keen observer,
the talk is indicative of something deeper than
fashion and what color looks best under bright
stage lights. Eleven young women who each pos
sess a profound love for their art were able to com
promise and come to a collective agreement in
less than twenty minutes.
Not only do the girls decide on their costumes,
but they compile each show and write every
scene, sometimes incorporating song and dance.
The freedom and trust Fox bestows on “her girls,”
defines the troupe as a rite of passage — a journey
marking the coming of age. The title of the next
show, jConstant Revolution!, reiterates this no
tion.
“The title sounds like revolution, evolution,
revelation,” Michaels muses, admiring its com
plexity.
The meaning not only signifies a noticeable
change but also refers to the circular course or cy
cle of events in one’s life. It’s a statement of the
power of the individual, a principle Fox herself
brings to management of the group.
“I have been steeped in personal theater
throughout my life,” she says. In her hometown,
New Paltz, New York, Fox’s parents practiced a
theater form called Playback Theatre, which is an
improvisational-based method of performance
generated by audience member’s stories.
Fox decided to begin her own theater
troupe after being inspired by students
she taught in theater classes at the Ama
zon Community Center and the WOW
Hall, she said. The collective formally
began in August 1996, under the name
The Young Women’s Ritual Theatre, af
ter 17 teenage girls showed up for an in
formal first meeting.
Considering the meeting was only
advertised by word of mouth, “it was a
surprisingly large turnout,” Fox said.
Since the collective’s first perform
ance in December 1996, it has grown so
large that there is now an audition
process every season; each audition
normally attracts around 25 girls from
the community. There are four new
members this year, replacing those who
moved on last spring.
Jamie Proctor, 19, was a founding
member of the company and now is a
theater major at New York University.
In retrospect, she says her involvement with the
YWTC “totally transformed how I view theater.”
Without the experience, she maintains her inter
est in the art would not be as passionate as it is
now.
“I feel good having this in my back pocket,” she
says.
After [Constant Revolution!, the young women
will begin preparing to take their work to small,
rural Oregon towns thanks to a recent grant from
the Oregon Arts Commission. Plans are also being
formed to take the show to Seattle, Portland, Ash
land and San Francisco later in the year.
In an effort to preserve the work of its ever
changing art repertoire, the collective has also
written a book, titled “Akimbo.” The anthology is
designed to capture an art form that is otherwise
impermanent.
“Because this is a theatre about exploring one’s
life as it passes, the actors ‘grow out’ of their
monologues like a pair of jeans,’ Fox wrote in the
book’s introduction. “The issue itself may be time
less for past and future generations of teenagers
but for the actor herself, it no longer is a present
struggle.”