When Fear and Bravery Collide
Discover what becomes possible when women create together.
Join a community of women exploring bravery through laughter, therapeutic drama, movement, storytelling, and creative theatre.
Together, you'll build connections, discover new possibilities, and help create an original theatrical production.
No theatre experience necessary! No pressure to share your trauma story.
- Completely free to participate
- Participant stipends available
- Support for participation barriers
- Begins January 2027 in Denver at Rose Andom Center
What is When Fear and Bravery Collide
When Fear and Bravery Collide is a nine-month, trauma-informed creative theatre experience for women who have been impacted by interpersonal abuse.
Participants come together in a supportive ensemble to explore bravery through therapeutic drama, improvisation, movement, storytelling, creative writing, character work, and play.
Over time, the group moves from exploration into creation, developing an original theatrical performance shaped by the women themselves.
This is not about being an actor. It is not about performing your trauma.
It is about discovering what becomes possible when women are given space to experiment, take creative risks, use their voices, connect with one another, and create something that did not exist before.
Unlikely Collaborators and The Perception Box
We all experience the world through a unique lens shaped by our relationships, experiences, beliefs, culture, and personal history. Unlikely Collaborators calls this our Perception Box™—the framework through which we make sense of ourselves, other people, and the world around us.
For women who have experienced interpersonal abuse, fear and survival can profoundly shape that lens. Beliefs about safety, trust, worth, visibility, power, and belonging may develop during experiences of abuse and continue long after the immediate danger has passed.
When Fear and Bravery Collide creates opportunities to become curious about those perceptions.
Through movement, improvisation, storytelling, role exploration, reflective writing, and creative collaboration, participants can notice the stories they carry, explore where those stories came from, try on different perspectives, and discover that there may be more than one way to understand themselves and their experiences.
We are not telling women what to think or who they should become. We are creating experiences that invite curiosity, reflection, and the possibility of seeing something differently.
What You'll Experience
You do not need to be an actor, performer, writer, or artist to participate in When Fear and Bravery Collide. You simply need a willingness to show up, experiment, and create alongside other women.
Throughout the program, you’ll take part in experiences that may include:
- Therapeutic Drama & Improvisation
Play, experiment, create characters, explore different roles and perspectives, and practice responding in the moment. - Movement & Embodied Exploration
Use movement, breath, body awareness, and creative expression to explore different ways of experiencing and expressing yourself. - Voice Work
Explore your voice—literally and creatively—through guided exercises designed to support expression, presence, and confidence. - Storytelling & Reflective Writing
Experiment with writing, imagery, memory, metaphor, and storytelling as ways of exploring experiences and ideas. - Creative Play
Laugh. Be ridiculous. Try something new. Make mistakes. Discover what happens when there isn't one “right” way to participate. - Collaborative Theatre-Making
Work with the other women in the group to create characters, scenes, images, movement, and original theatrical material. - Rehearsal & Performance
As the program progresses, the group will shape what emerges from the creative process into an original devised theatre performance to share with the community.
Your Story Belongs to You
You will not be required to tell the story of your abuse or reenact traumatic experiences in order to participate.
When Fear and Bravery Collide is about creative exploration, not asking women to put their trauma on display.
You choose what you share. You can work through character, metaphor, movement, imagination, fictional material, humor, and collective creation. Your boundaries, choices, and voice are an important part of the process.
The final performance will grow from what the ensemble creates together. It is not intended to be a public retelling of each participant's personal trauma.
What Are You Committing To?
When Fear and Bravery Collide is a long-term ensemble experience. The relationships within the group and the performance you eventually create together will develop over time, so consistent participation matters.
Program begins: January 2027
Program length: Approximately nine months
Meeting schedule: We anticipate meeting weekly on a weekday evening, approximately 6:00–8:00 PM, with scheduled breaks throughout the program.
Location: Denver/Lakewood area. Final session location and schedule will be confirmed before participants make their final commitment.
Attendance: Participants should be prepared to attend consistently and make the program a meaningful commitment over the nine months.
Rehearsals: As the group gets closer to the final performance, additional rehearsal time may be needed beyond regular sessions.
Performance: Participants will work toward an original public performance in Fall 2027.
A detailed calendar will be provided before selected participants are asked to make their final commitment.
Is This Program Right For You?
This experience may be a good fit if you:
- Are an adult woman who has experienced interpersonal abuse or relational trauma
- Are interested in exploring creativity, connection, movement, storytelling, or theatre—even if you have never done any of these before
- Are able to participate in a collaborative group environment
- Are interested in becoming curious about yourself and your experiences
- Can respect the privacy, boundaries, experiences, and perspectives of other participants
- Are able and willing to make a substantial commitment to the program
No previous theatre or performance experience is required.
Who Will Be Guiding The Experience?
Lucia DiVieste Severtson, MA, LPC, R-DMT
Lucia is the founder and Executive Director of The Brave Women’s Community Center and a licensed psychotherapist, Registered Dance/Movement Therapist, and creative arts practitioner. For nearly two decades, she has worked with women and girls navigating anxiety, trauma, relational harm, emotional and psychological abuse, and the lasting beliefs these experiences can create about who we are and what is possible for our lives.
Her work brings together psychotherapy, therapeutic improvisation, movement, drama, storytelling, creativity, and community. Rather than asking women to simply talk about their experiences, Lucia creates opportunities to explore them through the body, play, relationship, character, movement, and creative expression.
At the heart of her approach is a belief that healing is not only about understanding what happened to us. It is also about discovering who we are beyond what happened to us — reclaiming voice, experimenting with new ways of being, taking up space, experiencing joy and play again, and being witnessed by other women without having to perform, prove, or explain ourselves.
Lucia created When Fear and Bravery Collide from this intersection of therapeutic practice, creative arts, and her belief in the transformative power of women creating together.
Come Learn More
Not sure yet whether When Fear and Bravery Collide is right for you? That's okay.
We will offer in-person information sessions before the new cohort begins. These gatherings are an opportunity to meet us, learn more about the program, see the kind of creative work we'll be doing, and ask questions before deciding whether you want to participate.
We'll talk about:
- What a typical session may look like
- The creative and therapeutic approaches used in the program
- The time commitment and attendance expectations
- The performance and rehearsal process
- Participant stipends and available supports
- Group agreements, privacy, boundaries, and emotional safety
- Anything else you want to know before making a decision
Information sessions will be offered at The Brave Women's Community Center in Lakewood and/or the Rose Andom Center in Denver.
Dates will be announced soon.
Who Should Have Access to You?
A quick reflection guide to help you notice where subtle and overt abuse may be happening in your life