March 4 – March 23 at Theatre Row
Epic Theatre Ensemble is proud to announce the 2019 edition of its three-week Youth Theatre Festival: Epic YTF. Epic YTF is a celebration of a diverse and inclusive community, fighting for social justice and equality. The festival showcases original performances by students from the award-winning after-school program Epic REMIX.
This year, Epic YTF will take place from March 4 to March 23 at Theatre Row (410 W 42nd Street.) and will present “remixed” versions of two Shakespeare classics: Macbeth and Julius Caesar. Additionally, this year Epic YTF will feature the critically acclaimed student-written original productions Nothing About Us and Overdrive. In all, the four separate productions will feature the writing of over 170 young people, and bring the work of these high school students and 16 professional artists/mentors to the stage in professionally authentic performances. Every Epic YTF performance is open and free to the public and is envisioned as a community-building event.
Nothing About Us / Overdrive
NOTHING ABOUT US (30 minutes)- commissioned by New York Appleseed
NOTHING ABOUT US is a rigorous, passionate and hilarious exploration of educational segregation written and performed by those most affected and least consulted: NYC Public High School students. What does separate but equal mean to us today? Transformation, empathy, and youth voice drive the conversation in this thirty-minute touring play by Epic NEXT. “Nothing about us without us is for us.” OVERDRIVE (25 minutes)- commissioned by Teachers College
How many jobs demand that employees come up with the right answer on the spot, from memory, while the clock is ticking? How often are we forbidden to ask coworkers for help? How common is it for working professionals to be given a secret pencil-and-paper exam? The student researchers/writers/performers of Epic NEXT interviewed a diverse group of education stakeholders about the role of Standardized Assessments in Public Schools. Their findings will surprise you. OVERDRIVE is a
Julius Caesar 2020
(Evander Childs Educational Campus)
The year is 2020. U.S. social media is dominated by the POP (People Of Politics). Julius Caesar has been President 8 years. His progressive promises around women’s rights have become increasingly conservative. Resistance grows, led by the Daughters of Liberty fronted by celebrity singer Kate and Julius’ sister Governor Cassius. When the election looms, Caesar demands a 3rd term but is beaten by young feminist upstart Pompey. But Pompey disappears shortly afterwards, and strong protests erupt on both sides. Leading politicians and activists must take radical action. As America’s future hangs in the balance, the POP demands you tell the nation: whose side are you on?
Macbeth REMIX
(Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts)
“….something wicked this way comes!”
Devastated by Hurricane Elizabeth, the people of Escocia turn to Macbeth to lead the revolution against soaring drug prices at Dunsin Pharmaceuticals. But when a surprising offer arrives from Dunsin’s CEO, and with new powers of Prophecy, Success and Sin bestowed by The Weird Sisters, Macbeth finds himself considering actions he never thought he’d take. Will he abandon his people to pursue a bloody path to power? This timely, bold, and musical MACBETH REMIX is written and performed by the students of Harlem’s Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts at the Acorn Theatre at Theatre Row.
About Epic REMIX
Epic REMIX is a youth development program culminating in students performing alongside professional theatre artists in fully produced Shakespeare productions. Epic students accomplish a great feat, they debate the social and political questions of the play, decode the meaning of Shakespeare’s text, and weave their writing into the fabric of the script.
About Epic Theatre Ensemble
Epic Theatre Ensemble is a 501(c)3 organization comprised of artists and activists dedicated to making bold theatrical work on professional stages and in public schools that inspires dialogue about social, ethical, and political issues. Epic builds thoughtful citizenship in communities throughout NYC, modeling creative engagement with civic issues by commissioning, developing and producing socially-minded theatre and connecting these plays to schools and neighborhoods via innovative in-school, after-school, and public performance programs.
Epic accomplish this mission by inspiring students to be creative and engaged citizens, presenting compelling topics that transform the way people think, and collaborating with artists, students, and thought leaders to produce plays about critical issues