About the Addiction Performance Project

This is Archived Content. This content is available for historical purposes only. It may not reflect the current state of science or language from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). View current information on nida.nih.gov.

The Addiction Performance Project (APP) is a medical education program to help break down the stigma associated with addiction. Professional actors read from Act III of Eugene O’Neill’s Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning play Long Day’s Journey into Night then an expert panel responds to the reading. From 2011-2013, the APP was only a live audience event. In May 2013, the online version of this program was launched. The APP was developed and produced in partnership with Outside the Wire, LLC, and with the medical consultation from Elizabeth Gaufberg, MD, Harvard Medical School.

Please click here to view the Addiction Performance Project or view the videos below to hear about the impact of the APP.

How theater brings the reality of Addiction to Life - Dr. Nora Volkow, Director, NIDA

What is the Addiction Performance Project?

NIDA's Addiction Performance Project - What's it all about?

Cover of the APP Playbill Download CME (PDF, 2.4MB)
Download CE (PDF, 2.3MB)

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this activity participants will be able to:

  1. Better identify and more successfully treat or refer drug-addicted patients in primary care settings.
  2. Explore the role of individual biases and beliefs about people who abuse drugs and how these beliefs affect individual physician screening and treatment of patients.
  3. Use empathy, knowledge, and supporting tools to improve communication skills and confidence in conducting Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT).
For more information about previous live events please click here.