PREVENTION PLAYS
2nd Act is the only nonprofit organization in the United States that creates original drama therapeutic productions as a substance use prevention intervention. We utilize real stories, actors with lived experience, drama therapeutic theory, and prevention framework to ensure audiences walk away with a deeper understanding of and compassion for Substance Use Disorder and those affected by it. ​
PLAYS RUN 30-45 MIN & ARE:
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Performed by actors in long-term recovery or with lived experience of Substance Use
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Based on real stories
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Designed to meet relevant health education standards based on Department of Education outcomes for each state where 2nd Act performs
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Followed by a facilitated talkback from our actors
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Suitable for ages 12 and above
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Accompanied by a discussion and resource guide
OUTCOMES
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Identify what Substance Use Disorder (SUD) looks like in an individual and a family.
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Identify the nature and origins of SUD.
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Identify a trusted adult and local resources to talk to about SUD.
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Normalize conversation about SUD by practicing it post-show.
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Create allyship within the student body to help support those struggling with SUD.
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Identify pathways to recovery and healthy coping skills.
I'll Never Do That
THIS PLAY HAS BEEN ON TOUR SINCE 1989
An intimate story of one family's struggles happening behind closed doors. As one of the parents descends deeper into addiction, the rest of the family struggles to cope. This story sheds light on family dynamics, the harrowing path to recovery, and the overwhelming truth that addiction is a “family disease.”
Written by: Improbable Players
Spanish translation of the script is available for audiences. Translated by Pablo Barrera
I'll Be There for You
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I'll Be There For You follows a group of young people as they create an original play inspired by their daily lives, using the stage as a way to better understand themselves and the world around them. They pull themes from their own lived experience, such as gender and immigrant identity, relationships with adults, and the ways alcohol and other drugs can reshape the landscape of a young person's life. Ultimately they discover what it means to write one’s own ending.
Written by: 2nd Act
Spanish translation of the script is available for audiences. Translated by Pablo Barrera
State Health Education Standards
Below are the specific educational outcomes mentioned in state curriculum frameworks that 2nd Act seeks to meet through prevention play programming.
MASSACHUSETTS
RHODE ISLAND
OHIO
Grade 8
The effects of Substance Use on the Body
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10.5 Describe addictions to alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, and methods for intervention, treatment, and cessation
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10.6 List the potential outcomes of prevalent early and late adolescent risk behaviors related to tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs, including the general pattern and continuum of risk behaviors involving substances that youth might follow
Understanding of healthy decisions
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10.7 Identify internal factors (such as character) and external factors (such as family, peers, community, faith-based affiliation, and media) that influence the decision of young people to use or not to use drugs
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10.8 Demonstrate ways of refusing and of sharing preventive health information about tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs with peers
Grade 12
The effects of Substance Use on the Body
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10.9 Describe the relationship between multi-drug use and the increased negative effects on the body, including the stages of addiction, and overdose. Students research the increased chances of death from alcohol poisoning when alcohol is combined with marijuana
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10.10 Describe the harmful effects of tobacco, alcohol, and other substances on pregnant women and their unborn children.
Understanding of healthy decisions
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10.11 Explain the consequences of driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs
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10.12 Explain the physical, financial, social, and psychological cost of addiction
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10.13 Demonstrate the ability to make informed decisions regarding the use of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs. Students generate a list of alternatives to teenage drinking, tobacco, and other substance use
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10.14 Describe the influence of Substance Use on family members
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10.15 Apply promotion skills to encourage healthy behaviors (such as identifying and evaluating initiatives and opportunities for promotion, collecting and disseminating information, and modeling)
Grades 6, 7 and 8
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2.6. Describe situations requiring professional health services (I.E. stress; substance use; stages of alcohol and drug dependency
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2.7. Explain roles played by different health providers around health and substance use prevention.
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5.2. Describe how the substance use behaviors of family and peers affects others, including interpersonal relationships.
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6.2. Analyze how substance use decisions are influenced by individuals , family and/or community values.
Grades 9 and 10
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1.2. Describe the impact of substance use on the interrelationships of mental, emotional, social and physical health throughout young adulthood.
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2.2. Analyze resources from home, school and community that provide valid substance abuse information
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2.4. Access school and community resources and services for personal or family problems, and for treating substance use disorder.
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6.4. Describe how use of substances is influenced by changes in information, abilities, priorities, and responsibilities.
Grades 11 and 12
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2.1. Evaluate resources from home, school and community that provide valid information about substance abuse prevention and treatment for self and others.
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3.4. Research and evaluate strategies to prevent substance abuse by individual and groups within the family, at school, at work, or in other social situations.
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6.1. Evaluate different strategies when making decisions related to managing stress, conflict and use of substances.
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7.5. Evaluate community health services and systems in place relating to substance abuse prevention and treatment and make recommendations for improving those systems and services.
Grades 6, 7, and 8
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The harmful effects of and legal restrictions against the use of drugs, alcoholic beverages, and tobacco
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Prescription opioid abuse prevention, with an emphasis on the prescription drug epidemic and the connection between prescription opioid use and addiction to other drugs, such as heroin.
Grades 9, 10, 11 and 12
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The harmful effects of and legal restrictions against the use of drugs, alcoholic beverages, and tobacco
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Prescription opioid abuse prevention, with an emphasis on the prescription drug epidemic and the connection between prescription opioid use and addiction to other drugs, such as heroin.
PAST PERFORMANCE VENUES
Northeast US
(NH, VT, CT, MA, RI, NJ, NY, PA, ME)
OHIO
360 High School
Addiction Referral Center and Hudson Youth Camp
Arlington High School
B.F. Butler Middle School
Berkshire DA STRIVE Conference
Bigelow Middle School
Brookline High School
Brookview House
Chapel Hill Chauncy Hall School
Conackamack Middle School
Daley Middle School
Delaware Valley Regional High School
Dr. An Wang Middle School
Duggan Middle School
Dunellen High School
East Bridgewater Council on Aging
East Providence High School
Eastie Coalition + Excel Academy
Edgerley Family South Boston Boys and Girls Club
F.A. Day Middle School
Fenway Health
Ferryway School
Framingham Farm Pond
Framingham Force
Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School
Hammarskjold Middle School
Hudson High School
Hunter College
Islamic Center of Boston Sunday School
J.G. Pyne Arts Middle School
James P Timilty Middle School
James S Daley Middle School
James Sullivan Middle School
Jim Gillen Teen Center
Joseph P Keefe Technical High School
Keene Middle School
Kennedy Middle School
Kickemuit Middle School
Ludlow Senior High School
Lynnfield Middle School
Malden High School
Malden Public Library
Malden YWCA
Marblehead High School
Mario Umana Middle School Academy
Marlboro Memorial Middle School
Marlboro Middle School
Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery
McKinley Prep High School
Melrose Wakefield Hospital
Meridian House - North Suffolk County Mental Health Association
Middlesex Sheriff's Office
Milton High School
Monadnock Regional Middle High School
Moses Youth Center
Mt. Hope High School + Warren Prevention Coalition
Muriel S Snowden International School
New Liberty Innovation School
Newton North High School
Newton South High School
Norfolk County Agricultural School
O'Malley Middle School
Oak Hill Middle School
Piscataway High School
Quibbletown Middle School
Salem High School
Salem Prep High School
Sanborn Regional Middle School
Scituate Center for the Performing Arts
Scituate High School
Seacost High School
Sharon Middle School
Souhegan High School
Springfield College School of Social Work
Stoklosa Middle School
Succeed Boston - Boston Public Schools
The Fay School
The Park School
Theodore Schor Middle School
Voorhees High School
Watertown CARES Coalition
William H Ohrenberger 3-8 Grades School
Willis Moore Youth Center
Wilmington North Intermediate School
Winchester Public Library
ADAMHS Board of Cuyahoga County
Bard Early College High School (CMSD)
Bay High School
Berea High School + Ohio Guidestone
Bolton Elementary School (CMSD)
Brecksville-Broadview Heights City School District
Cleveland State University
CMSD Professional Development Center
Community Assessment and Treatment Services
Cuyahoga Community College
DEA 360
East Cleveland Public Library
East Tech High School (CMSD)
Emerson Elementary School
Fairview High School
Garret Morgan High School (CMSD)
Glenville High School (CMSD)
Greater Cleveland Aquarium
Harmon Middle School
Heartland Recovery High School
James A Garfield Middle School (CMSD)
Jane Addams Business Career Center High School (CMSD)
John Adams High School (CMSD)
John Marshall High School (CMSD)
KeyBank
LatinUs Theatre Company
Lewis F Mayer Middle School
Life and Purpose Behavioral Health
Lotus Clinical Research LLC
Market Square at Crocker Park
Mental Health, Addiction and Recovery Services Board of Lorain County
Middleburg Heights Hospital
MyCom Cleveland
Olmsted Falls High School
Olmsted Falls Middle School
Ranger High-Tech Academy
School of One High School (CMSD)
Shaker Heights High School
Shaker Heights Middle School
Southwest General Health Center
St. Vincent Charity Medical Center
Stella Maris, Inc.
The Centers for Families and Children
University Hospital
Urban Community School
Westshore Young Leaders
Windsor Laurelwood Center for Behavioral Medicine
Wooster High School