Stages of Life
Stages of Life is an intergenerational playwriting workshop for young people (14–20) and older adults (60+). It was inspired by New York Theatre Workshop's Mind the Gap program, and they helped us plan ours.
Bringing teens and elders into conversation and art-making can help us to bridge generational divides while building empathy, developing creativity, and debunking stereotypes across different age groups. I am thrilled that Story House Ithaca has found inspiration in our approach and philosophy and is starting this intergenerational/co-generational program in Ithaca. ​
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- Alexander Santiago-Jirau, former Director of Education,
New York Theatre Workshop
Stages of Life 2026
Lehman Alternative Community School (LACS) edition! The nine-week workshop will run Thursdays from 10:45 AM to 12:15 PM from January 29 to April 9, 2026 (minus school holidays February 19, March 19, and April 3). Participants will get to know each other, learn about playwriting, and write short plays about each other’s lives.
The young people will all be LACS students. Applications are now open for seniors who wish to participate.
Meet the Team
Lesley Greene (2026) is a playwright, sound designer, composer, and event producer. She isa also co-director and co-founder of Story House Ithaca. Lesley worked for many years at the Kitchen Theatre Company as a producer, grant writer, and theatrical jack of all trades. She is co-founder and co-organizer of Porchfest, a festival that began in Ithaca in 2007 and now takes place in more than 250 cities across North America. Her play, The Turnaway Play, has had dozens of performances across the United States. lesleylisagreene.com.
Jen Pearcy-Edwards (2026) relocated to Ithaca in April 2023 after spending 17 years living and working in London. She has worked professionally as a devising performer and puppeteer, storyteller, film and theatre director, producer, and educator. She is a graduate of renowned physical theatre school LISPA (London International School of Performing Arts – now relocated to Berlin under the name Arthaus Berlin) and is a founding director of Corvus Pictures, her film production company with her partner, Robin Guiver. Jen served as General Manager of the Cherry Arts from 2023-2025, where she also directed two devised family productions, Peter and the Wolf and Baba Yaga. Jen directed Ms. Holmes and Ms. Watson, Apt. 2B at the Hangar last summer and will be directing FEAST. at the Kitchen Theatre in spring 2026. She is currently interim co-director of Story House Ithaca.
Sarah Plotkin (2024) is a director, educator and cultural worker. In 2022, she returned to her hometown of Ithaca after more than a decade in New York City and Boston. In NYC she has worked with St. Ann’s Warehouse, Ars Nova, La MaMa E.T.C., The Tank, The Center at West Park, and Dixon Place, among others. Since moving back to Ithaca she has directed with the Hangar Theatre, the Kitchen Theatre, The Cherry Arts, and Walking on Water Productions, and taught theater with Civic Ensemble, the Hangar Theatre, Ithaca College, CSMA, and the Ithaca Youth Bureau, among others. She also partners with Story House Ithaca to present Artist Gym, her signature collaborative creation workshop series. Sarah holds an MA in Theatre Education and Applied Theatre from Emerson College, is an Associate Member of SDC, and a proud member of the Civic Artistic ensemble. http://www.sarahplotkin.com/
AJ Sage (2024) has been a multidisciplinary theatre artist in the Ithaca area for over a decade as a writer, director, actor, producer and stage manager. Since 2019 AJ has served as artistic director for House of Ithaqua (HOI), which produces theatre in the horror and science fiction genres. His writing for the stage has been produced locally by HOI, the Actor's Workshop of Ithaca, the Ithaca Fringe Festival and Lilypad Puppet Theatre. In 2021 AJ co-taught a short play development workshop called Shadows of 2020 and is so excited to now be collaborating with Story House Ithaca on Stages of Life!
Sara Stamatiades (2023) is a PhD candidate in the Literatures in English Department at Cornell University. Sara’s teaching experience includes developing and teaching freshman writing seminars at Cornell, working with teens in the university’s Pre-Freshman Summer Program, and teaching at a middle school in Spain. Recently, her focus has shifted to community-engaged work. With the support of a fellowship from Humanities New York, Sara co-created a one-act workshop with the House of Ithaqua theater company in 2021. This workshop taught participants the basics of playwriting, provided an outlet for reflecting on the (sur)realities of the pandemic, and helped build community during an isolating time.
Carley Robinson (2023) is the Education Coordinator at the Community Folk Art Center at Syracuse University, a cultural and artistic hub committed to the artists of the African diaspora. She was formerly the Learning and Engagement Associate at the Hangar Theatre; she has also worked locally with Civic Ensemble and Clockmaker Arts. A 2020 graduate of Cornell and winner of the Robinson-Appel Humanitarian Award, Carley is a theater practitioner who has worked with youth, formerly incarcerated individuals, and other members of the community. She recently played the title role in Civic Ensemble’s original production “Delia Divided.”
Stages of Life 2024 was supported by a generous grant from the J.M. McDonald Foundation. Stages of Life 2023 was made possible by support from the Legacy Foundation and with funding from The Community Arts Partnership of Tompkins County and the Community Foundation of Tompkins County.
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