Streets, Bridges, Cul-de-Sacs, and Dreams: Does Inviting Shelter Dwelling Youth to Work with Culture Industry Professionals Engender a Sense of 'Cruel Optimism'?

This paper examines a New York-based project, Crossing Bridges, that brings together 15 sex-trafficked and homeless young people and 15 award winning Broadway artists to create theatre together. These two participant extremes offer a unique opportunity to contribute considerably to new iterations of both communal practice and the aspirational aims that underpin applied theatre projects. Drawing on Henry Giroux's concept of the culture of cruelty, the paper will consider if this project displaces the impact of cultural capital and elitism and whether it has the potential to enhance accessibility, or if there is something inherently 'cruel' in this offer.