TV Exclusive: High Schoolers Unite for Roundabout's Student Production Workshop

Roundabout Theatre Company just presented a play by 17-year-old senior Darleny Suriel, titled Colored Lines. The world premiere play for the ninth annual Student Production Workshop, which took place last week at the Black Box Theatre in the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre. BroadwayWorld was there throughout the process and we bring you an exclusive look inside the special event!

The 2015 Student Production Workshop company included: playwright Darleny Suriel (Repertory Company High School), director Maury Mayen (Repertory Company High School), assistant director Khadim Diop (Repertory Company High School), managing director Fernando Mota (Curtis High School), stage manager Kimberly Aragon (Repertory Company High School) and production manager Brittany Bencivenga (Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School).

Education at Roundabout's Student Production Workshop (SPW) is a student-led theatre company modeled after Roundabout's professional theatre production process. Students register at the beginning of the school year, and participate in workshops and attend Roundabout productions throughout the fall and winter. In October, students apply for leadership positions (Artistic Director, Assistant Director, Managing Director, Production Manager, and Stage Manager), and once they are selected, they lead the ensemble through a series of workshops and show visits. To enhance their leadership skills, the student leaders meet with their counterparts at Roundabout throughout the process. They also meet artists from all Roundabout mainstage productions. The participants, who hail from all five boroughs, are offered a safe environment to create art that interests and excites them.

Education at Roundabout uses theatre to enhance teacher practice and deepen student learning in New YorkcCity classrooms. Using the professional theatre resources of Roundabout Theatre Company, Education at Roundabout is dedicated to: transform the classrooms of New York City public schools; engage students in theatre experiences that explore the universal themes of the human condition; build a community of confident, expressive young people; foster a new generation of artists and arts administrators; and expand the impact of Roundabout's productions by providing historical, literary and social contexts in the classroom. roundabouttheatre.org/education