ABOUT | SOBRE
MAP’s young playwrights develop original plays that express their understanding and experience of the world, and we professionally produce those plays for public audiences. Our programs are tuition-free and always will be. The Manton Avenue Project focuses our work on the nationally-recognized model of Creative Youth Development (CYD), defined as a "commitment to supporting young people’s stories, ideas, and dreams through creative expression and honoring their lived experience" (Creative Youth Development National Partnership). By respecting the brilliant ideas of historically/continuously marginalized young people, and presenting those ideas to public audiences, MAP cultivates our students' resilience and improves their self-efficacy, both indicators of Positive Youth Development that lead to long-term success in adulthood, including healthy relationships, community connections, and economic self-sufficiency.
Los jóvenes dramaturgos de MAP desarrollan obras originales que expresan su comprensión y experiencia del mundo, y nosotros producimos profesionalmente esas obras para audiencias públicas. Nuestros programas son gratuitos y siempre lo serán. El Proyecto Manton Avenue centra nuestro trabajo en el modelo reconocido a nivel nacional de Desarrollo Juvenil Creativo (CYD), definido como un "compromiso de apoyar las historias, ideas y sueños de los jóvenes a través de la expresión creativa y honrando su experiencia vivida" (Creative Youth Development National Camaradería). Al respetar las ideas brillantes de los jóvenes históricamente/continuamente marginados y presentar esas ideas a audiencias públicas, MAP cultiva la resiliencia de nuestros estudiantes y mejora su autoeficacia, ambos indicadores del Desarrollo Juvenil Positivo que conducen al éxito a largo plazo en la edad adulta. incluyendo relaciones saludables, conexiones comunitarias y autosuficiencia económica.
Founded by Jenny Peek in 2004, MAP has grown from a program of 10 young people to one who has served over 200. MAP has longstanding and meaningful partnerships with William D'Abate Elementary School, Olneyville Housing Corporation/ONE Neighborhood Builders, The Central Providence Health Equity Zone, the Providence Youth Arts Collaborative, the Brown/Trinity MFA Program, Mentor RI, the Rhode Island Council on the Arts, the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, and more. With the help of over 500 grown-up artists, we’ve produced over 1000 plays written by over 200 Olneyville children. Each year we serve ten new 3rd graders, and up 70 young people aged 8-18.
Fundado por Jenny Peek en 2004, MAP ha pasado de ser un programa de 10 jóvenes a uno que ha atendido a más de 200. MAP tiene asociaciones significativas y duraderas con la Escuela Primaria William D'Abate, Olneyville Housing Corporation/ONE Neighborhood Builders, The Central Providence Health Equity Zone, Providence Youth Arts Collaborative, Brown/Trinity MFA Program, Mentor RI, Rhode Island Council on the Arts, Rhode Island Council for the Humanities y más. Con la ayuda de más de 500 artistas adultos, hemos producido más de 1000 obras escritas por más de 200 niños de Olneyville. Cada año atendemos a diez nuevos estudiantes de tercer grado y hasta 70 jóvenes de entre 8 y 18 años.
Current Executive Director
Victoria is a neurodivergent queer femme born to the Southside of Providence and the proud descendant of immigrants from São Miguel & Guatemala. Victoria's work has been rooted in Intersectional Human and Environmental Activisim and Community Organizing. For the past seven years Victoria has focused her activism as a Social Justice Facilitator using the power of story centered dialogue in her mission to reclaim and create access to a healthy quality of life, for all kin. In 2019 she co-founded Facilitate Change, a social justice facilitation and coaching organization. She believes that with a focus on individual storytelling we are better able to put our social justice work into practice daily.
Our Board of Directors is filled with dedicated members of our community who are invested in the youth of Olneyville. Comprised of parents of MAP, Educators of the William D'Abate School, members of the theatre community, and financial/non profit professionals lending their expertise to MAP. We are so grateful to our highly engaged Board for their unwavering commitment to the work of serving our young people!
Acting Co-Chairs
Melenie Charles (she/her) & Michael Fourniner (he/him)
Directors
Brien Lang (he/him) Elsie Aquino (she/her), Kira Melville (she/her), Mark Roberts (he/him), Isabelle Sanatdar Stevens (she/they) & Carmen Rodriguez (she/her)
Founding Story
After spending sixteen years working in theater, film and TV in New York City, Jenny Peek moved to Providence, RI to start the organization that became The Manton Avenue Project (a replication of The 52nd Street Project, her favorite NYC volunteer opportunity).
During her time running MAP, Jenny was given a number of opportunities to speak about children and their inherent artistic abilities, including writing and recording an essay entitled “Creativity” for WRNI’s THIS I BELIEVE RHODE ISLAND (September 2009), participating in the TEDx Moses Brown event “Lives ThatSpeak” (“GANGSTER PIGS, FLYING MONKEYS AND A WHOLE LOTTA DOGS, what teaching playmaking to kids taught me”; April 2012) and serving twice as a panelist at her alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania (“Art and UrbanTransformation”, Alumni Weekend 2010 and “Children and the Performing Arts: Beyond the Mozart Effect”, Homecoming2012). She was named one of Providence Monthly Magazine’s “Ten People You Don’t Know Now But Should (And Who May Change the Face of Providence)” in 2007. Jenny has a BA in Physical Anthropology and is currently back in New York City working as a Broadway Company Manager. Founding The Manton Avenue Project and serving as its first Executive Artistic Director is and will always be the best thing she has ever done and she couldn’t be prouder of what it has become.
MAP Since Its Founding
After Jenny's founding years, MAP was headed by the unforgettable and heart forward Artistic Director, Meg Sullivan, who lead the organization for another 13 years! During her time, she built out our programming to beyond the 5th grade given the deep relationships fostered with alumni! She established a middle school program and high school internship program that exists to this day. She also introduced a shared leadership model where MAP had 3 Co-Directors for almost 3 full years. Icesiss, co-Director of Operations, started with MAP in the 3rd grade and Nicole, co-Director of Programs, has been a volunteer of MAP since its founding years. It is people + relationships such as these that have brought us to the 21 year mark!