In the spring semester of 2025, a collaboration between the Theatre for Young Audiences graduate cohort and Peacehaven Farm explored the development and execution of a Sensory Friendly (SF) theatrical model. Peacehaven Farm is a residential community farm in Whitsett, NC serving adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In Phase I of the project, Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) collaborators engaged in a 6-week residency at Peacehaven Farm, facilitating story dramas with the residents of the farm. In Phase II, TYA collaborators, along with the Peacehaven Core members, devised a rendition of William Shakespeare’s Midsummer’s Night Dream and an original spin-off to Wicked, which was presented to the public at Greensboro Project Space in April 2025.
Each week during this project, the TYA graduate cohort spent time at the farm devising a theatre scene based on the themes and interests of the Core Members. They eventually decided on songs and themes from Wicked, creating their own original characters, which created the title of their work, Follow the Yellow Brick Road. Thanks to the CVPA Community Engagement funding, Core Members were able to have costumes, props, and set for their final production.
Rachel Briley, Director of the MFA program in Theatre for Young Audiences and Artistic Director of the North Carolina Theatre for Young People (NCTYP), describes the project:
“If there is one word I could use to encapsulate everything this project brought into our lives it would be joy. Each time we arrived at Peacehaven Farm, the Core Members would greet us with such enthusiasm and passion for the work we were doing. I am ever so grateful to the College of Visual and Performing Arts at UNCG for supporting our work through grant funding.”
The TYA graduate students involved had similar joyful experiences.
Brooklynn Levonas reflects, “this project was incredibly meaningful to me as an artist, educator, graduate student, and community member. Meeting and creating with the Core Members of Peacehaven Farm was the highlight of my first year as a graduate student. We became a creative community that embraced ideas, passions, and excitement within the space. Bringing their ideas to life in such a thrilling way was the most rewarding part for me. The Core Members of Peacehaven Farm inspired me so much throughout this process, and I will forever cherish the time we spent together!”
Fellow graduate cohort member, Lizzy Brannan, adds, “The best part of the process for me as an artist, teacher, and student was getting to see these Core Members create characters, settings, and the scenic backdrop. Celebrating their strengths and getting to know them brought me so much joy.”
After a successful and entertaining presentation at Greensboro Project Space, Professor Briley and the TYA graduate cohort had the opportunity to share this experience and the SF process model more widely. The project culminated in a model for developing SF work with specific tools for replication by other theatre companies while expanding the paradigm of inclusive arts in the field of theatre. Briley, Levonas, and Brannan presented their community-engaged research to the field of professionals in Theatre for Youth at the national TYA/USA Conference in Washington, DC in May of 2025.
This community engaged project was funded through the CVPA Community Engagement Grant supported by a grant from The Cemala Foundation.
Story by Caitlyn Schrader
Photo credit: Sean Norona
