What is Anonymo/us Project?

Anonymo/us Project provides students with a space to share their voices and be heard by one another. The project culminates in a multimedia production, following an in-depth process involving the collection and synthesis of important stories and real experiences that define school life, relationship issues, and coming of age. While the show is highly entertaining and earns rave reviews from students, parents and administrators alike, it serves a broader mission to encourage openness, respect, and empathy within the student community. As such, it straddles the realms of entertainment, mental health support, comedy, education, student life, and theater. 

The show is developed from responses to an anonymous student survey. Student leaders are taught to identify topics and craft an engaging survey to solicit honest and thoughtful answers. Past topics dealt with range from personal experiences such as grappling with self-love, relating to parents and siblings at home, and romantic relationships to more community-wide issues such as academic pressure, technology in daily life, and social life at school. The survey and show provide an opportunity for students to share the stories and thoughts that they have about themselves, their community, and their experience of growing up today.

Student project leaders then learn how to create a script of monologues and scenes derived from student survey responses and to hold an open call audition to cast the performers. The script continues to evolve as cast members bring their own perspectives and interpretations to the pieces. In addition to the scenes and monologues performed onstage, Anonymo/us Project® also tries to employ as many other talents from the community as possible, from original songs and dances to student films and visual art. No matter the medium, each performance piece is a reflection of the student survey responses. 

Anonymo/us Project gives students a chance to share their authentic selves without fear of judgement and to listen to one another human-to-human. Because the submissions aren’t identified with specific individuals, the student audience is able to experience the material far more objectively than is normally the case in today’s culture. Employing creative, artistic expression to represent a community in a safe, engaging space encourages active listening and enhanced empathy and inclusion.