RISING YOUTH THEATRE ARTS CAMPS

We welcome students with disabilities and learning differences into our program! If your child has an IEP at school or specific learning / support needs please let us know, either in your registration form or via email to ty@risingyouththeatre.org or rachel@risingyouththeatre.org. We are happy to meet with you or talk on the phone before camp to talk about how we can support your camper 

Rising Youth Theatre Arts Camp is a multi-arts camp that uses theatre as a lens to experience a wide range of art forms including storytelling, performance, movement, visual art, writing, and music. Students will experience multiple art forms through the process of collaboratively creating a performance together.  

A general schedule of the week is as follows: 

Week One

Monday - Community Building and Connection 

Tuesday - Yoga, Skill building 

Wednesday, Thursday - Continued building and creative exploration of a topic, beginning to write a script

Friday - Script development, game exchange 

Week Two 

Monday - finalizing script 

Tuesday - yoga, skil workshops, design 

Wednesday, Thursday - Rehearsal, design 

Friday - Performance, Celebration / Movie  

At the end of each two week session there will be a performance for families. This performance will take place in our space at the Phoenix Center for the Arts at 12:30pm on the 2nd Friday of the camp week. 

There is space for all students to participate, whether they are performers, designers, writers, or interested in multiple things! We will challenge all students to push themselves to try things outside of their comfort zone in a safe and supported way, but will never force them to perform if they aren't comfortable with it.  All students will be asked to try different elements of the theatre work, including performing, design, movement, etc. 

This is a multi-arts experience, and some young people will be trying new art forms for the first time. We encourage young people to explore their creative side and learn new artistic skills, and we really want young people to try everything, even if it is new. We want them to learn that it’s okay to make mistakes and try new things because that is how we grow and develop as artists and as people.

The camp day goes from 9am - 3pm Monday through Friday. We have extended care available from 8am - 9am and 3pm - 5pm. A typical day at camp looks like: 

9:00 - 9:45 - Community check in and warm up game (whole camp) 

9:45 - 11:45 - Class time (separate age groups) 

11:45 - 12:30 - Lunch (whole camp, supervised unstructured time)

12:30 - 12:45 - Quiet Time (whole camp, opportunity to re-set before returning to class) 

12:45 - 2:45 Class time (separate age groups) 

2:45 - 3:00 Check Out and close (whole camp) 

Campers will need to bring a shelf stable lunch and a water bottle. We also recommend sending your child with a snack, as they will be working hard and expending energy throughout the day. We will have snacks available for purchase for $1 each. Campers are not permitted to go to the building vending machines on the bottom floor during the camp day. 

Campers should always bring a shelf stable lunch and water bottle to camp. They are welcome to bring a book or quiet activity for quiet time or extended care. Electronics can *only* be used during these times, and camp staff will not be responsible for any personal items that are missing or broken. Please alert our team if your child utilizes electronic devices as communication or therapeutic outlet necessary for participation in a class. On Tuesdays we will do yoga and we ask that your camper bring a yoga mat. We have extras if you do not have one - you do not need to purchase one for camp. Yoga mats can be left at camp throughout the week. 

At Rising Youth Theatre, we believe every young person should be respected in their gender identity. We have many campers and staff that are gender diverse and we work to build an inclusive environment for all. For this reason, we ask people to share their pronouns with us at the start of camp.

We believe in a restorative approach to managing conflict and discipline. This means, we will support young people in mediating conflict and in reflecting on their own behavior choices and learning to make healthier ones when challenges arise. We will also support young people in naming harm and understanding and naming what they need to heal that harm, should a conflict arise. We will do our best to provide behavioral support to all young people. Any form of behavior that is unsafe or aggressive will be documented in writing by our staff in addition to providing redirection. Aggressive physical behaviors such as fighting, hitting, or biting will not be tolerated, and staff members will intervene immediately in order to keep the space safe and encourage peaceful behavior. Any form of verbal harassment or bullying will also not be tolerated. Open communication between parents/guardians and intensive staff is considered key in resolving any challenges that arise and supporting young people in making healthy choices. Multiple incidents may result in your young people going home for the day or removal of the session without refund. Please, feel free to contact us for further information regarding our discipline policy. 

We are able to offer a full refund (minus a $50 cancellation fee) when families cancel at least 30 days before a program's start date. We are able to offer a 50% refund if patrons cancel between 7 and 29 days before the start of a program and a 25% refund if patrons cancel between 1 and 6 days before the start of a class. No refunds can be issued for any reason after the start of a camp event. 

We are committed to offering scholarships to every session of our program, and build those scholarships into our annual budget. We also receive generous grant funding from the Arizona Community Foundation that allows us to increase the amount of scholarships we offer. Our scholarships are offered on a rolling basis and we increase the amount we are able to offer as more paid registrations are received.