People in the outside world often feel that if the quality is considered that important it, the play, deserves their time. We put a lot of time and effort into everything so that the whole production is sacred and is as valuable as the stories. It makes the actors feel proud to put on a beautiful costume that a lot of energy has gone into. The designers who work with the group also train apprentices, those who are often too shy to appear on stage themselves, and are able to impart valuable skills and knowledge. One apprentice stage manager was recently offered two professional gigs after the theater staff where the group performed noticed her skill and professionalism.
Professionals often help create the libretto and music for musicals.
Six published New York City poets joined the group to create a production that used poetry, song and storytelling to explore the hope and anguish that often accompany living on protease inhibitors. The poets were matched with clients and became mentors, teaching their pupils how to write poetry from Haiku to verse. On a simple stage, the poets dressed in all black and tucked in cubbyholes, wrote and recited poetry that relates to the actors' life transitions while the actors do the same. A bell rang on stage numerous times as a constant reminder of the inflexible schedule to which patients must adhere. While some addicts described the torture of having to abstain from narcotics while taking protease inhibitors, other actors talked about how protease inhibitors have made their disease undetectable.