Youth Performance Company
YPC was founded in 1989 with a vision: at YPC youth will have a voice in the creative process, be empowered as leaders, and produce theatre at the highest standard of artistic excellence. For 35 years, YPC has created exceptional, local, and national award-winning theatre and educational films by and for youth. We are known for including kids of any income, identity, and background, coming together to seek their potential, experience poignant live arts events, and develop the positive relationships youth and teens need to thrive in a turbulent landscape. YPC's collaborations with PACER Center and World Without Genocide, among others, have helped the organization speak out against injustice and encourage audiences to become catalysts for change in their own communities.
Our activities are organized within three categories: Mainstage, Education, and Leadership.
Mainstage:
YPC presents courageous productions that depict complex themes featuring youth in leadership roles. We have tackled subjects like the Holocaust, Civil Rights, violence, and teen reproductive health. Youth are empowered to perform onstage or collaborate as stage managers, designers, and crew. We prepare them for the future as ambitious and gracious artists. Student matinees have always been a feature at YPC, offering our mainstage shows to student groups. We offer hundreds of free and reduced tickets for both school group and weekend audiences and keep full-price tickets affordable for families.
Education and Leadership:
We deliver our performance-based classes open to youth K-12. Our curriculum includes creative play for young children, beginning acting, musical theatre performances, and training for teen artists. YPC classes are affordable and we provide a number of scholarships each year. Our Young Artists Council (YAC) allows youth to participate in content creation, as crew members in productions, front of house, and in program development.
Community:
Our teaching artists, staff, volunteers, audiences, and youth, come from a variety of backgrounds and identities throughout the Twin Cities Metro and beyond. YPC is a creative home, especially for individuals from historically marginalized identities and backgrounds. In 2022, we collaborated with New Native Theatre for a "Seconding" exchange program. New Native Theatre staff learned technical skills and YPC staff developed greater cultural competency and community relationships.