SENsory Youth Theatre started in 2021. After gaining funding from GeeWhizz, their sessions have been developed through a partnership with Open Theatre who are an industry leading theatre company who make work with and for people who are learning disabled and neurodivergent.
The SENsory Youth meets up at the theatre during term time on Tuesdays there are two age groups:
- SENSORY JUNIORS ages 4 to 12. Tuesdays 4.15pm – 4.50pm (parents/carers are expected to stay on the premises)
- SENSORY SENIORS ages 13-18. Tuesdays 5pm – 5.40pm
The cost is £60 per term which lasts for 10 weeks, however the theatre believes that finances shouldn’t be a barrier and there are bursary places and also payment plans available.
For more information and to apply for a place, please contact engagement@theatreroyal.org
The two groups support young people who identify as learning disabled, neurodivergent, having SEN, or other social, emotional, and mental health needs. These groups give them the opportunity to participate in creative play within a fun, friendly, and accessible environment.
The games are all focused on allowing the participants the autonomy to make them their own. They play simple games that have a set structure, but are simple enough to allow the young people the opportunity for creativity and flexibility. The facilitators allow the young people to take the games in any direction they want and they follow their initiative. Sometimes they find that a group love playing a particular game and therefore they might repeat that games for a couple of weeks to allow the participants the opportunity to develop their responses. The SENsory Theatre always start the sessions with the same warm up and will always cool down with a dance party where everyone can get up and have a dance to celebrate their achievements in that session.
The SENsory Theatre Games include:
Wakey, Wakey – One participant pretends to sleep on the floor. The other participants pile hats on the ‘sleeping’ participant. After all hats have been piled, we count down from 3 quietly before shouting “wakey wakey”. The sleeping participant then wakes up in a dramatic manner and sends the hats flying across the room.
Scarf Dancing – One participant takes the end of the scarf with a facilitator at the other. The participant can then respond to the music in any way they want and the facilitator will join in with their ideas.
Crossing Spots – Similar to the floor is lava, one participant and a facilitator will cross a designated space with only three coloured spots. It is up to the participant to find a way to get both themselves and the facilitator across without stepping on the hot floor.
Catching Beanbags – Each participant in the group has a beanbag and they have to throw them into a hat which is being held by a facilitator in the middle of the circle.
The SENsory Theatre sessions are very music focused. Every section of the session is pinpointed through music. They use a particular track to play specific games so their participants will start to know what game they are about to play through the use of music. The facilitators use the changing of the tracks to indicate that they are moving onto a new game.
The sessions are predominantly delivered in a non-verbal manner, music becomes important to use as a communication tool between the facilitators and participants.
The SENsory theatre do not put on productions as they feel that would put too much pressure on the young people. The benefits of the SENsory theatre is to have fun through play and music which builds self-esteem and develops friendships.
