Education & Community Storytelling
Education & Community storytelling
THIS IS MY STORY!
In-School. Afterschool. Assemblies. Community Centers. Storytelling enriches our communities through shared dialogue. It expands cultural connectivity and builds inclusive narratives. Through our educational residencies, Houses on the Moon Theater Company empowers youth and adults via storytelling workshops, creative writing, theater techniques and artistic game play. We center the creation of safe creative spaces for transformative engagement.
We have multiple programming options tailored to meet the needs of your school, community and budget, including the THIS IS MY STORY Classroom Residency, and our current touring educational production, REAL 1.
Our artists are professional actors able to build unique experiences with students and adults. Through experiential workshops, they guide participants in the creation of artistic work that blends our collective differences and unifies our individual experiences.
With support from the New York City Council, HOTM has facilitated multi-year educational residencies at Pan American International HS in Elmhurst, Queens, (funded by the Cultural Immigrant Initiative) & Hostos-Lincoln Academy in the Bronx (supported by the ART: A Catalyst for Change initiative), as well as workshops with the American Friends Service Committee, History UnErased and 5th-12th grade schools across NYC’s five boroughs.
Get in touch
To bring our storytelling workshops to your community, please contact [email protected].
Real 1
Written & Performed by Ian eaton
Directed by Carlo D’Amore
Identity. Acceptance. Forgiveness.
REAL 1 is an original coming-of-age story through the eyes of an artistic kid in 1980s West Harlem.
Drawn from his experiences growing up in Harlem’s Manhattanville NYCHA campus, this 50-minute one-person play explores writer-creator Ian Eaton’s journey of navigating Catholic school, strict West Indian parents, and the loss of his older brother to street violence. When challenged by a neighborhood bully, he must confront the kind of man he wants to become – finding empathy, connection, and strength in unexpected places.
REAL 1 was developed as part of gUN COUNTRY, Houses on the Moon Theater Company’s original storytelling workshop series with individuals whose lives have been impacted by gun violence. In 2024, the show was presented at select New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) facilities in Manhattan and Brooklyn through a partnership with NYCHA, the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).
“It showed me how two people could come together and make things work with the differences of their backgrounds…and that’s what we need today, to be working together instead of apart.”–NYCHA Workshop Participant
“It was done so beautifully that it resonated with us, 14 year olds, 15 year olds, 8 year olds, 7 year olds…I think it’s perfect, it’s got a blend of everything”–NYCHA Workshop Participant
“There’s so many instances and parts of it that I really connect to… I’ve seen kids like that, I’ve had kids like that in my classroom, so I know”–Elaine Lane, Educator and Founder of David’s Shoes
To bring REAL 1 to your community, please contact [email protected]
