THEM Youth Ensemble

08/27/2022

It's finally here! We're up and running for the fall and CAN'T WAIT for all the exciting performances we've lined up this fall and all we need is you! LGBTQ+ and allied youth ages 13-24 can register now to join us in rehearsal at themyouth.org/join-us.

06/10/2022

At our rehearsal last night we had our first community meal since February 2020! Thanks to all of you who supported us, and to Selena’s Salvadoran Food for providing basically a million pupusas! If you want to support us feeding our community during rehearsal, please donate at themyouthensemble.org/donate Happy Pride!

02/21/2022

In this moment of transition, building, and dreaming for us, THEM has been taking time to "zoom out" and assess our place in the community, our mission, and our vision for drastic change. We know our work is urgent and necessary: The Trevor Project reports that in 2021 42% of LGBTQ+ youth contemplated su***de, 60% of trans and nonbinary youth reported that COVID-19 impacted their ability to safely express their gender identity, and 75% reported having experienced discrimination due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. We see our work as violence-intervention, as an alternative to the status quo, where young people are celebrated for exactly who they are and given the opportunity to be supported in community.

[ID: a black and white photo of a THEMber with bold text "WHY THEM" overlaid on top. Three pie charts visually represent different statistics, 42%, 60%, and 75%. ]

02/18/2022

We're highlighting the young artists who make THEM happen! Meet Jo (they/he), a THEMber since fall 2021. Check out what Jo has tos say about THEM:
"I joined THEM because my friend recommended the group to me! My Guinea pigs and pet rat bring me joy 🤩 "

[ID: A photo of Jo, with large green text above that says "Meet a THEMber, and the THEM logo in the bottom right corner.]

02/16/2022

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT! As of this year, THEM is officially an incorporated 501(c)(3) and we're stoked to announce our inaugural Board of Directors who are helping us build infrastructure and capacity to take on more exciting projects, and live our values of equity and access. We're proud to center youth leadership in concrete ways- young artists from our program lead our organization and are key decision-makers as we look toward the future of our programming for Arizona's q***r youth. Stay tuned for more about what we're up to; there's two more weeks to register to perform with THEM this spring! https://www.themyouth.org/join-us

[ID: photos of five THEM Board members in circluar photo frames, their names are listed below their photo in THEM's bright green: Emilie, Juno, RuthAnn, Ryan, and Nicky. The THEM logo is in the bottom right corner.]

02/10/2022

We've been working under the radar with some big announcements coming soon, but for now, we want to introduce Teré Fowler-Chapman, who is helping us write our THIRD original composition! Teré will be joining us in rehearsals this month- and there's still time to register here: https://twdmkwf3cwp.typeform.com/to/RoRYFB42

[ID: a photo of Teré, a Black trans person smiling and wearing a long-sleeved, button-up shirt. A black triangular sidebar has the THEM logo and the text "Thursdays at 5pm, on Zoom"]

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Teré Fowler Chapman is a black trans activist, writer, educator in Tucson—by way of Sonoran desert | by way of boot’s bayou. He is a Marsha P Johnson Fellow, National Arts Strategies’ Creative Community Fellow, and Rocky Mountain Regional Emmy Award nominee. He has over 10+ years supporting local organizations, local artists in reaching their fullest potential, while sustaining his own creative practice. You can find Teré or their work forthcoming or published in many places, including founder of Words on the Avenue, Tucson Poetry Festival, Huffington Post, University of Arizona’s VOCA, TEDxTucson, Tucson Weekly, Arizona Public Media’s PBS & NPR & more.

Website: maroonwork.com | Photo Credit: Zach Oren.

11/16/2021

We were so glad to take part in this project with GALA Choruses and our sibling choruses Transpose PDX, shOUT: Minnesota's Trans & Gender Diverse Voices, Phoenix, Colorado's Trans Community Choir, and Spectrum Singers. Catch our TDoR video this weekend!

THIS WEEK!

Sacred Resilience
Friday, November 19 at 8pm EDT / 5pm PDT
Sunday, November 21 at 5pm EDT / 2pm PDT
Register for free at https://galachoruses.streamallytix.com

Sacred Resilience is a celebration of trans life, trans ways of knowing and being, and trans joy in observance of Trans Day of Resilience 2021. The event will feature a new commission by two transgender artists, composer Mari Esabel Valverde and poet Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi, as well as an original, collaboratively-written composition by trans members of the GALA Choruses movement.

10/23/2021

SNEAK PREVIEW! We're getting ready for Trans Day of Resilience next month, and we're writing some original music! Each week we all say something that has brought us joy since our last rehearsal, and then we turn our collective joys into lyrics! We're calling our song of joys "two claps twice," can you guess why?

10/16/2021

Y’al!! It’s been a chaotic fall for THEM (just like everyone else) but we /finally/ had an in-person rehearsal at our new rehearsal location ! We learned some new music, recorded some familiar music, and most importantly asked the question: without telling us your gender, what’s your gender? Let us know your answer in the comments!
[ID1: a selfie with a group of THEM singers against a white wall. ID2: a different group of singers in our makeshift recording studio!]

09/24/2021

We’re in the news! Thanks Tucson Weekly for this feature. There’s still time to sing with THEM this fall! Register at: https://twdmkwf3cwp.typeform.com/to/RoRYFB42

Mikah Rosanova wanted to sing tenor in high school. Their choral director told them they’d need to stay where they’re at—as a mezzo soprano. : “Choir was the space where I felt like I belonged, simply because there were other q***r people there. But I felt like I didn’t belong because I wa...