CO＿LAB TOURS: THE STAGE THAT COMES TO YOU
What it is
CO＿LAB Tours is our touring initiative that brings original theatre—created and performed by CO＿LAB’s adult artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities—directly into New York City schools serving students with I/DD.
Why it matters
Adult artists with I/DD are consistently excluded from professional theatre—and from paid work in it. Students in NYC schools, particularly those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, rarely encounter disabled adults as professional performers and creative leaders. CO＿LAB Tours is built to change that.
What's Included — $1,500*
one 30-minute live assembly-style performance
pre-show materials to prepare students and staff for the show (including an educational resource guide as an introduction to theater and our performance)
a cast talkback or touch tour
Add-On: Workshop
Go deeper with a 45–60 minute workshop led by a CO＿LAB Teaching Artist and CO＿LAB Leader. Students engage directly with the themes of the performance and make some theatre of their own.
*For the 2026/27 School Year, we are aiming to secure philanthropic support that will allow us to offer deeply subsidized rates to school partners, including some performances which will be offered free of charge. If you are interested in bringing CO_LAB to your school, please reach out to begin a conversation about what rate may fit within your budget.
The 2026-27 touring production:
The Sensational Senses
CO＿LAB Tours launches with The Sensational Senses, an original puppetry production with music that premiered at wild project in January 2025.
FOR SCHOOLS
About this year’s show
The cast of The Sensational Senses is ready to dazzle with their renowned variety performance. Today’s extra-special guest? None other than international pop sensation Selena Gomez! But when things go hilariously haywire behind the scenes, the cast must rally together to troubleshoot a series of unexpected surprises.
A funny, heartfelt story about how we take care of each other when everything falls apart—and a tour through the human sensory system—The Sensational Senses reminds us that the best performances happen when we work together. Even when the power goes out…
To learn more, or to bring CO＿LAB Tours to your school, contact our Programming Team at programs@colabtheatergroup.com.
FOR FUNDERS
Every school should have access. You can make that happen.
CO＿LAB Tours launches in 2026–27 with a simple goal: no school should have to turn down a visit because of budget. Your support makes it possible to offer our first year of performances at no cost to our school partners—giving communities the time to experience the program before building it into future budgets.
Funding CO＿LAB Tours means paid professional work for adult artists with I/DD, and live disability-led theatre for students who rarely see it.
To partner on CO＿LAB Tours, or to request further information, please email Development & Communications Manager Ari Brenner at aa.brenner@colabtheatergroup.com.