Pride Youth Theater Alliance Announces 10th Annual Queer Youth Theater Conference July 25-28 in Pittsburgh

Coalition of 37 National Queer Youth Theater Programs Comes to Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, PA - The Pride Youth Theater Alliance, a growing network of LGBTQ youth theater organizations and individual artists located across the country, announces its 10th annual conference, to be held in Pittsburgh, PA. The PYTA strives to advance the practice of Queer Youth Theater by providing emerging and established leaders in the field with resources and opportunities to exchange, collaborate, and learn. The conference will be hosted by Dreams of Hope - a PYTA Member Organization also located in Pittsburgh. The conference has been held in 8 different cities, including San Francisco, Orlando, Memphis, and last year, Boston, with attendance continually growing. Last year’s conference brought in over 100 attendees, with nearly 50% of the attendees identifying as youth (ages 18 or under). The conference invites practitioners, artists, and leaders to showcase their art, talents, skills, and knowledge with their peers from across North America. Dreams of Hope will also partner with local arts organizations and artists to connect attendees with the vibrant local arts and LGBTQ scenes of Pittsburgh. The conference weekend will also provide opportunities for Pittsburgh residents to witness performances, engage with artists, and learn more about youth programs locally and nationally.

The Pride Youth Theater Alliance was formed to unite Queer Youth Theater leaders, whose programs were developed as isolated responses to local pressures or interests. Today, this thriving alliance promotes successful models of Queer Youth Theater programming through financial support, pedagogical resources, and advocacy for artists, activists, youth, and educators.

Based in Pittsburgh, Dreams of Hope provides the region’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, asexual, and allied (LGBTQA+) youth a welcoming environment to grow in confidence, express themselves, and develop as leaders through the power of arts. Their creative contributions educate audiences, build awareness, and increase acceptance. Dreams of Hope will be presenting a free public performance from their theatriQ Youth Ensemble on Saturday, July 27th.

LGBTQ issues are prevalent in the news right now, but the needs of LGBTQ youth often get overlooked. Many youth are isolated, looking to connect with other LGBTQ peers as they explore their own identities. Through the Pride Youth Theater Alliance Annual Conference, young people, who are consistently at the forefront of many social justice movements, use art to tell stories, build opportunities for awareness, and create opportunities to foster connections with other youth. In a world where adult voices are too often given priority, Queer Youth Theater groups equip youth with tools to be the change they seek. These organizations, located around North America, are building coalitions of young artists, activists and leaders, who advocate about the importance of expressing themselves and building community through performance art, production, writing and other forms of creating. Through these programs, queer youth are finding their space and community to be their whole selves, thriving through queer youth theater.

The Conference is a weekend-long gathering for leaders in the Queer Youth Theater field - artists, activists, educators, directors, students, and community organizers - to share their work, experience, skills, and knowledge in collaborative, peer-led workshops and sessions. Its peer-led approach supports best practices in theater education, theater-making, youth leadership, queer advocacy, community organizing, and program development. There are several opportunities to be involved in the conference! Register to attend or volunteer! For all deadlines and applications, visit bit.ly/PYTA2019.

About the Pride Youth Theater Alliance | Founded in 2012, PYTA began as a cohort of directors, educators, and activists representing Queer Youth Theater (QYT) programs from across the U.S. and Canada. PYTA raises awareness and fosters institutional unity for the work of the individual programs and in the QYT community at large. See more details of PYTA’s work and members at: prideyouththeateralliance.org.

Free Public Events at the PYTA Conference |

PYTA Celebration

Saturday, July 27th, 7:30PM

Bricolage’s Theater: 937 Liberty Avenue, 1st Fl., Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Celebrate with PYTA as we honor our members and experience the incredible work of our conference host, Dreams of Hope!

Dreams of Hope’s theatriQ will present an excerpt from their most recent show, Chasing Elevation along with musical and drag performances from individual ensemble members.

In addition to the performance, we will be presenting our annual PYTA awards to our 2019 winners: Mikayla Reynolds, Theo Meacham, and About Face Youth Theatre.

PYTA Member Organizations

Current PYTA members are located in 18 U.S. states.

About Face Theatre - About Face Youth Theatre (Chicago, IL)
Art & Soul Innovations, Inc. - Proud Theater (Wisconsin) 
Center for Applied Theater and Active Culture - QuTheatr Ensemble (Ohio)
Circuit Playhouse, Inc. – Q&A (Memphis, TN)
Company Q (Lexington, KY)
Dreams of Hope – theatriQ (Pittsburgh, PA)
LOUD: New Orleans Queer Youth Theater (New Orleans, LA)
Neutral Zone Teen Center – Riot Youth (Ann Arbor, MI)
Out & Allied Youth Theatre (Waterville, ME)
Out Front Theatre Company (Atlanta, GA)
Rainbow Pride Youth Alliance – FIERCE (San Bernardino, CA)
Richmond Triangle Players & TheatreLAB – SPECTRUM (Richmond, VA)
Simi Valley Cultural Association - Spectrum Collaborative/PRIDE Youth Theatre Co. (Simi Valley, CA)
The Coterie - Pride Players (Kansas City, MO)
The Girl Project (Versailles, KY)
The Omaha Theater Company – Pride Players (Omaha, NE)
The Theater Offensive – True Colors: Out Youth Theater (Boston, MA)