Runaways is a musical which was written, composed and directed by Elizabeth Swados, about the lives of children who run away from home and live on the city streets. The characters were taken from workshops conducted by Swados with real-life runaways in the late 1970s.
Swados took her idea for a musical with the theme of running away from home, from a boyfriend, from a predator,... from yourself to Joseph Papp, who agreed to produce it. She looked for the children who would be in the musical in various places in New York City, such as a community center, and little by little, we built a world where runaways came together, told their stories, and acted out the hardships they endured. Swados did research for her project as she gathered the cast, and some in the cast were actual runaways. The show was done in a series of songs, monologues, scenes, poems, and dances.
In the show, 28 multi racial, multi ethnic children explore the fragmented life of the runaway in an inner city. Through songs, monologues and poems the children examine and explain why they are runaways. They are abused, come from broken families, or are in an orphanage. The children show a range of emotions, and are seen as victims but also perpetrators . They plead with their families and society 'Let Me Be A Kid Again.'
