By Hollie Wegner-Jaszkin, Communications and Marketing Manager, Youth Theatre Arts Scotland
In 2022, Youth Theatre Arts Scotland teamed up with the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities to carry out a research project into the long-term impacts of participation in youth theatre. Last week, we were delighted to publish our full report and eight brilliant case studies, which help to prove the life-changing impact of youth theatre on participants’ professional and personal lives.
We already knew, before starting out on our research journey, that youth theatre produces great performers and youth arts leaders. But we also wanted to know whether participating as a young person made for better teachers, doctors, and so on, so we had a particular interest in evidencing impact on those who went on to work in sectors unrelated to the performing arts.
We were delighted to be able to evidence a positive impact on participants’ confidence, emotional intelligence, resilience, teamwork and leadership skills, emotional wellbeing, and broadened horizons. These findings are now being communicated to key policymakers, funders, and network members, and YTAS hopes to use them to shape future planning and delivery in the youth theatre sector. We hope youth theatre organisations themselves will find the proof of their impact, as evidenced in our report, useful for funding applications and sparking ideas for future projects and collaborations.
Read the full report (including methodology, key findings and the full case studies)
Youth Theatre Arts Scotland (YTAS), Amateo member since 2019, is the national development organisation and umbrella body for Scotland’s youth theatre sector. They support inspiring experiences for young people by connecting and training the people who work with them. They support a membership of around 120 youth theatre organisations and practitioners all across Scotland. Read more in our interview or visit their website.
Clik here to view.
The research The Long-Term Impact of Youth Theatre Participation has being added to Amateo database with over a hundred research studies from across Europe which relate to cultural participation!
