Summary
Organization name
VIVA Theater
1999
Tax id (EIN)
84-1611646
Category
Arts, Culture & Humanities
Address
PO Box 19882Boulder, CO 80308
Boulder County, CO, US
Your donation enriches our community and the creative vitality of older adults.
Even with our shoestring budget, ticket sales from our spring and fall shows cover only a part of our expenses. Please help us keep the lights shining and the laughter rolling.
Testimonials
"Thank you, VIVA Theater, and extraordinary cast of DUDE, for an epic journey lovingly shared!" - Jane Shepard, playwright
"We all left musing over the rich, amazing history of this wonderful valley & were given hope for the future." - Dixie, Longmont Senior Center reviewing Dude, It's Boulder
"Our last performance starts in 5 minutes. I'm going to miss this great group. I've had so much fun! The journey from a high school play 51 years ago to today has been a hoot!!! Love to all my fellow cast members. And especially Jane for being so patient and a great cheerleader!" - Gypsy Thomas, cast member
Mission
The mission of the Society for Creative Aging/VIVA Theater is to encourage healthy and vibrant aging through creative expression by providing opportunities for older adults to participate in the arts as performers, learners and audience.
Background Statement
VIVA Theater is an innovative community theater company with a 20+ year history of providing high-quality theatrical performances in Boulder County and the surrounding area. Our main target population is older adults (55+), although we encourage intergenerational participation at all levels of the organization.
For an older adult who wants to be involved in the arts, it can be challenging to find a meaningful experience in theater. We offer exciting opportunities for former professionals, those with no prior experience, and everyone in between. We learn from each other.
VIVA Theater is community theater, run by volunteers. We pay for certain tasks by contract, and provide stipends to directors, producers, and other persons involved in specific productions.
Many of our participants have expressed their delight at finding new friends and involvement, especially after they have suffered a life-changing experience such as losing a spouse. We want everyone to feel valued and able to contribute. We believe we fill a special niche in the community.
Many plays written for our demographic are either very silly or deal with only the depressing parts of aging. To remedy this, we produce shows that are clever, witty and, frankly, extremely entertaining, and practice unconventional casting that upends the stereotypes of "seniors". Our shows appeal not only to older adults - as both actors and audience - but also to younger audiences. Our intergenerational productions have showcased 90 year-olds playing the ingenue as well as high school students in the roles of authority figures.
We produce works that allow us flexibility. Some shows are conventional, with complete memorization. We have staged "live radio shows" in which the theater becomes a broadcasting studio where actors read from scripts in front of microphones. Other productions may be what we call hybrids, with conventional staging but with scripts in hand. These productions offer older adults, who can no longer memorize, the ability to perform.
We have performed well-known plays and have also commissioned new works from local playwrights. One new work was "Dude, It's Boulder" by Jane Shepard, in 2019.
Media gallery
Organization Data
Boulder, CO 80308