Courageous Cadence: Rhyme in Resistance is a tuition-free, youth-centered spoken word and theatre-making program designed to empower young poets and performers to use their voices for justice. Through monthly workshops, guest artist sessions, ensemble creation, and a fully staged residency production, participants explore identity, advocacy, and artistic expression grounded in race, gender, disability, and healing justice.
Who Can Participate
Core Program Pillars
Program Highlights
All sessions are held at in-person. The program culminates in a spring performance residency, ending with a fully produced public showcase.
Congratulations to Our New Courageous Cadence Cohort!
We’re excited to welcome six incredible youth poets and performers into the 2025-2026 season of Courageous Cadence: Rhyme in Resistance. Over the next eight months, this inspiring group will learn, write, and perform together through monthly workshops and a final performance residency at The VORTEX.
We can’t wait to witness the powerful stories, voices, and visions they bring to the stage. Welcome to the family, Courageous Cadence cohort. Your journey begins now!
Program Schedule
Courageous Cadence is a supportive, high-impact program designed to help youth grow as poets, performers, and leaders. All sessions are held at The VORTEX (2307 Manor Rd, Austin, TX) and build toward our fully staged spring showcase. Attendance is required at all sessions. However, we understand that life happens, and pre-approved schedule conflicts or emergencies are okay with advance communication. Youth are expected to participate fully, share their work, and support the ensemble. Because the final performance is a collaborative effort, participation in the April residency is based on consistent engagement, commitment, and creative growth throughout the year.
Since its founding, Courageous Cadence alumni have gone on to:
-
Earn degrees in fields such as Art Therapy, Creative Writing, and Theatre
-
Work as community activists, youth leaders, and organizers
-
Perform as spoken word artists, theatre makers, and slam poets
-
Facilitate workshops and mentor younger youth in arts and justice spaces
-
Continue their artistic growth through public performances, residencies, and professional productions
Courageous Cadence supports youth not only as artists, but as changemakers who continue to amplify their voices and stories long after the program.
History
Courageous Cadence was founded in 2020 by Jasmine Games, Artistic Director of The Poet House. Originally developed as part of Jasmine’s graduate studies in Drama and Theatre for Youth and Communities (DTYC) at The University of Texas at Austin, Courageous Cadence began as a Performing Justice Project, adapting ensemble performance methods to center spoken word poetry as a tool for racial, gender, and healing justice.
The early development of Courageous Cadence was supported by community partnerships with Speak Piece Poetry Project, Austin Bat Cave, and the UT DTYC program. The program first launched as a virtual residency during the COVID-19 pandemic, operating online in Fall 2020 and Summer 2021. In 2022 and 2023, Courageous Cadence moved into in-person programming through summer residencies hosted at the African American Youth Harvest Foundation's Urban University Summer Camp.
In Spring 2024, The VORTEX hosted the first full in-person Courageous Cadence residency, marking the program’s transition into a partnership between The Poet House and The VORTEX. Today, Courageous Cadence continues to grow as a collaborative spoken word and performance residency where youth develop original writing, engage in social justice dialogue, and perform fully staged public showcases. The program also includes zine publishing and digital storytelling to amplify youth work both on and off the stage.
