Destinies: An applied theatre co-creation with vulnerable groups producing inter-relational communities of practice

This chapter will highlight the importance of applied theatre approaches for, with, and by when working co-creatively with vulnerable young people. Destinies comprised of twenty six young people aged between 14-19 years old who had either care experience, or were unaccompanied asylum seekers under the care of Derbyshire County Council (UK). Originally conceived as a theatre piece with music, working with external artistic partners, Destinies should have been a six month project that delivered a script-in-hand performance to an invited audience. However, due to the Covid pandemic lockdowns and restrictions in early 2020 Destinies would evolve over a two year period, into a fully digitalised, multi-disciplinary, award winning filmed theatre piece. Using a/r/tography methodologies, the research was able to flex and adapt to these challenges raising new questions and producing outcomes that could not have been anticipated. This chapter will reflect on the artistic working processes of Destinies, and propose that co-creation can cultivate deep learning, skills development and increased well-being.