PASSION PLAY FESTIVAL
COALITION EVENTS – ONE NIGHT ONLY
1. Community Event – PASSION ACTION
Produced by Vernice Miller, Sarah K. Simmons, and Darci Fulcher of ALATetc.,
Passion Action tackles the “question of prayer” by bringing together members of the surrounding Fort Greene community with Epic Artists to exchange expressions of devotion (music, dance, theatre, food) and engage in a lively discussion.
2. DISPATCHES FROM (A)MENDED AMERICA by Godfrey L. Simmons, Jr. & Brandt Adams
Conceived by Godfrey L. Simmons, Jr. and Brandt Adams of the investigative theatre, Above The Fold, Dispatches is a documentary play-in-development examining race and politics through the prism of the election of President Barack Obama. Based on Godfrey and Brandt’s interviews of Americans while traveling throughout the South during the month leading up to Obama's inauguration takes us on a journey of the hopes, misconceptions, fears, and good humor of the American South. Performed by a company of 10 actors, five black and five white.
3. THE HOLY MOTHER OF HADLEY NEW YORK by Barbara Wiechmann
New Georges with Ripe Time presents a revival reading of The Holy Mother of Hadley New York by Barbara Wiechmann, directed by Rachel Dickstein, dramaturgy by Emily Morse.
In this richly-imagined and lyrical play, the Holy Mother appears in the kitchen window of Agnes, a grieving young woman, and whispers that she’s coming for a visit. The news flies fast through Agnes’ upstate town. At the appointed time, the whole of Hadley walks up the hill towards a snowy parking lot, to await the arrival of the Virgin. New Georges (Angela’s Mixtape, God’s Ear) commissioned Hadley, and their production opened at the Ohio Theatre on September 10, 2001. Those who ventured downtown in the weeks that followed saw a play suddenly expressive of the moment: a play about sorrow and comfort, community and hope.
4. THE ICON SERIES Parts 1, 2 & 3
Produced by Cara Greene.
Three staged readings of ambitious, adventurous works by women playwrights whose themes, history, and geography connect with Passion Play.
THE BEARD OF AVON by Amy Freed, directed by Chip Brookes
THE CHILDREN’S HOUR by Lillian Hellman, directed by Claire Beckman (in partnership with Brave New World Repertory Theater)
THE SIGN IN SIDNEY BRUSTEIN’S WINDOW by Lorraine Hansberry, directed by John Gould Rubin (in partnership with Labyrinth Theater Company)
5. FLUX’S FOREPLAY SERIES Parts 1, 2, & 3
Produced by Flux Theatre Ensemble: 16 playwrights re-imagine 8 stories from the Old Testament as a precursor to their world premiere of August Schulenburg’s Jacob’s House. More info: www.fluxtheatre.org
Journeys: Abraham & Sarah, Ruth & Naomi; Playwrights: Rob Ackerman, Jeremy Basescu, Bekah Brunstetter, David Ian Lee; Director: Angela Astle; I and Thou: Binding of Isaac, Moses. Playwrights: Leila Buck, Christine Evans, Michael John Garcés, Bill George; Director: Heather Cohn
6. COMMUNITY EVENT - THE OBERLIN OBERTONES
Epic was co-founded by three alums from Oberlin College. Now Oberlin's premiere all-male A Cappella Group visits our Festival with their unique repertoire: from The Beatles to ballads to cartoon theme songs.
7. THE FALLEN by Yasmine Rana
Directed by Caroline Reddick Lawson, Artistic Director of Nora's Playhouse
Presented by Nora's Playhouse. From the systematic rape camps of Kalinovik to the rooftops of Sarajevo, the bottom of the Adriatic Sea, and the balconies of Turin, The Fallen gives breath to the stories of the war's women, children, and their struggle for self-acceptance and reconciliation.
8. PASSION PLAY SOUND PAINTING
Produced by The Irondale Ensemble Project
Walter Thompson and The Walter Thompson Orchestra will perform two evenings of Soundpaintings inspired by Sarah Ruhl’s Passion Play.
Soundpainting is the multidisciplinary live composing sign language created by New York composer Walter Thompson for musicians, actors, dancers, and visual artists. The 20-member orchestra is comprised of 16 musicians and four actors from the Irondale Ensemble.
9. THE VELVET RUT by James Still
Produced by Epic in partnership with The Lark Play Development Center
Directed by Lisa Rothe
Featuring Cotter Smith ("Next Fall") and Nick Abeel
Mr. Smith is a high school English teacher who used to know this for sure: He loves his students, his wife, his poetry. When a single event unravels his world and sends him free-falling into a crisis of faith, a Boy Scout named Virgil mysteriously arrives to take him on a soul-searching trek through a haunted wilderness that begins in an empty church and ends on a front porch with a red door.
10. WIDER THAN THE SKY by Jessica Litwak
Produced by Above The Fold
WIDER THAN THE SKY is a love story about neuroscience exploring the ethics of using animals for medical research. An allegory for America's appetite for domination and how that appetite affects the dominated and the dominator. Each member of the 5-person ensemble plays a Brain Doctor, a Brain Patient, and a Rhesus Macaque Lab Monkey.
11. Epic in partnership with Rising Circle Theater Collective, the Center for Human Rights & the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, The Culture Project, and The Lark Play Development Center.
GRACE by Sanjit De Silva and Deepa Purohit
directed by Nandita Shenoy
A young law student travels to Africa in hopes of saving the world. But in his quest to help one young woman, he finds his own sense of purpose challenged in the crossfire of western idealism and the grim realities of working on the ground. Based on real events, Grace asks the question where does idealism end and reality begin?
The reading is part of a full-day conference on theatre and human rights. Following the performance there is a post-show discussion featuring individuals in the field of human rights and arts-activism.
12. THE MASTER AND MARGARITA
Waterwell presents excerpts of its new adaptation of The Master and Margarita, performed by students of the Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS). For more details: www.waterwell.org
POST-SHOW FORUMS & PRE-SHOW “WORD” SERIES
Guest speakers join members of our company to discuss key questions and ideas emerging from the play.
Wednesday April 28, 7:30pm
FORUM: “Religion and Theatre”
Cecilia Rubino, Assistant Professor of Theater, The New School
Mark Larrimore, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, The New School
Friday April 30, 7:30pm
THE WORD (6:15pm)
James Wallert, Epic Theatre Ensemble
FORUM: College Night
Susan Nakley, Assistant Professor of English, St. Joseph’s College
Saturday May 1, 7:30pm
THE WORD: “Oberammergau” (6:15pm)
James Shapiro, Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University; author of Oberammergau: The Troubling Story of the World's Most Famous Passion Play
Thursday May 6, 7:30pm
THE WORD: “Tableau” (6:15pm)
James Wallert, Epic Theatre Ensemble
FORUM:
Phil Alexander, Metropolitan Opera Guild
Saturday May 8, 7:30pm
FORUM:
Robin Rogers, Associate Professor of Sociology at Queens College and the CUNY Graduate Center
Thursday May 13, 7:30pm
FORUM: “Music and Faith”
Matt Huett, Glad Tidings Tabernacle
Andre Henry, Glad Tidings Tabernacle
Saturday May 15, 7:30pm
FORUM:
Ann Pellegrini, Associate Professor, Performance Studies and Religious Studies, NYU
Sunday, May 16, 3:30pm
BREAKING BREAD (Forum + Food):
Joyce Avrech Berkman, Professor of History, UMASS
Len Berkman, Professor of Theatre, Smith College
Wednesday May 19, 7:30pm
FORUM:
Obery Hendicks, Visiting Scholar, Institute for Research in African-American Studies and Department of Religion, Columbia University; author of The Politics of Jesus: Rediscovering the True Revolutionary Nature of Jesus' Teachings and How They Have Been Corrupted
Friday May 21, 7:30pm
FORUM:
Celia Deutsch, Adjunct Associate Professor of Religion, Barnard College
Monday May 24, 7:00pm
FORUM: Faith and Peace
Chris Hedges, author of War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning and American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America
Friday May 28, 7:30pm
FORUM:
Christy Tennant, Host of IAM Conversations, International Arts Movement
Epic’s Post-Show Forum Series is made possible in part by funds from the New York Council for the Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
PASSION PLAY SPECIAL OFFER:
PASSION PLAY YOGA with Jody Christopherson
Saturdays, May 22 and May 29, 10:30am-11:45am @ The Irondale Center, $10/session
The Flexible Core: Core Strength Vinyasa Beginners Mind for all levels. Core Strength Vinyasa is strong physical practice supported by the "hara" or core abdominal muscles. In this class we will explore drawing into our center, engaging physically and philosophically in order to align with our creativity and sense of adventure. Jody Christopherson is a registered yoga teacher with Yoga Alliance. She is certified in Core Strength Vinyasa by the founder of the style Sadie Nardini and has been teaching in NYC for over 4 years. In the spirit of creative abundance 20% of the proceeds go to benefit The Actors Fund.