Proud Theater has an established track record for facilitating workshops. We have facilitated workshops for support groups, conferences, and school organizations. We also do performances and talk-backs. If you are interested in having us facilitate a workshop for your organization, conference, or event, please contact us.

Workshop Styles

We are very flexible and can facilitate or present workshops in a variety of different formats. We can feature performances of our youth and talkbacks that provide the audience an opportunity to engage in the issues presented in the performance. We also facilitate interactive workshops through the Proud Theater Process. These interactive workshops are powerful and helpful especially for support/affinity groups and for employee/volunteer IDEA (inclusivity, diversity, equity, & accessibility (sometimes referred to as EDI- equity, diversity, and inclusion)) training.

We can also present on the work that we do through Proud Theater (including our shared youth leadership model), or our intergenerational justice work (including how it intersects with our shared youth leadership model and our Connections intergenerational conference) and our contributions to Wisconsin’s rich queer history and arts scene. We are flexible and can blend several formats or discuss other formats or topics and customize them to fit your group or setting.

Past Workshops

Some workshops Proud Theater has given include:

• Performances and talk-backs for several years at Middleton High School as part of their Human Rights Week
• A performance after a film at the Milwaukee LGBT Film Festival
• A presentation to graduate students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education on the experience of LGBTQ+ students of color and strategies for educators and administrators to build support, advocacy, and justice
• A workshop and training for the Wisconsin Asperger’s Empowerment Meetup group
• A workshop for youth at a high school gender sexuality alliance (GSA)
• A workshop and training at the GSAFE Safe Schools, Safe Communities conference for educators and mental health professionals
• The annual Connections conference, a conference built around building community across intersectional identities and generations

The Proud Theater Process

Using theater for art, heart, & activism, and centering approachability throughout our process.”

The mantra behind the Proud Theater Process

Many people think of performing and see it as something they would like to see but not actually do themselves. We developed our Proud Theater Process to make engaging through theater more approachable for participants of all backgrounds. We begin every workshop or rehearsal with facilitated conversation, building trust along the way.

We practice devised theater, meaning we use a collaborative process to create art together. We never force anyone to engage in ways that are uncomfortable to them; rather, we encourage folks to engage through a brave space model of practice. What we find is that people who lean into that potential discomfort find the experience rewarding; they have a powerful voice and the skills to use it.

In many group conversations, common themes will emerge. We take these themes from our guided conversation and collectively improvise to communicate them through performance. There is trial and error involved, and we can guide the development to a variety of levels in its progression depending on planned outcomes and time available.

We would love to talk more about our workshops and presentations with you! Feel free to reach out with any questions that you have about what we can offer, or if you are ready to start crafting an experience together.