Please forward or repost
Three Upcoming Events at the Brecht Forum
451 West Street*
New York City
* travel directions below
The Theater of the Oppressed Laboratory (TOPLAB)is proud to be a supporter
of three exceptional events that will be taking place at the Brecht Forum
on February 2, 3 and 4, 2011. Please try to attend, and forward this
message to others who might be interested.
1. Women on Wednesdays: Engage. Create. Empower. (February 2)
2. Ladies First: Beyond 28 Days Arts Exhibition (February 3)
3. FreEpLay Friday (February 4)
Full descriptions follow
***
Wednesday, February 2 at 7:00 pm
Women on Wednesdays: Engage. Create. Empower.
A Black History Month Special Event
Co-sponsored by Betty's Daughter Arts Colloborative, Ocean Ana Rising and
Theater for the Free People
featuring Ayanna Smith (vocalist), Nina Angela Mercer, Saartije Project,
Ebony Noelle Golden
The Brecht Forum in association with Betty's Daughter Arts Collaborative
and Ocean Ana Rising presents Women on Wednesdays Arts and Culture Project
(Wow), a month-long series that highlights Black girls and women in the
field of theater, music, dance, film, literature and scholarship every
Wednesday in February. With a robust line up, including award winning
artists and cultural workers such as Saartijie Project, Black Light.
Carmen Mojica, Alyesha Wise, J Jewls Sandy, Ayanna Smith, El Puente
Marjuan Cheyenne Ross, Body Ecology Pefromance Ensemlbe, Lorna Lowe, Zoe
Flowers among others.
Contribution--sliding scale: $10-$15
Reserve online at
http://brechtforum.org/civicrm/event/info?id=11851&reset=1
***
Thursday, February 3 at 7:00 pm
Ladies First: Beyond 28 Days Arts Exhibition
opening night celebration
curated by Lehna Huie and Alexandra Lust and featuring works by Miatta
Kawinzi (painting), Beatriz BeckFord, (quilting), Leticia Contreras
(photography), Amber Adams (sculpture), Ruth Vargas
(painting/performance), Uni. Q. Mical (poetry), Charmaine Bee
(photography), A.J. Hamilton (photography), Jessica
Valores (painting/collage/poetry), Sophia Dawson (photography), Samantha
Lust (film), Jova Vargas (video), ShaNeia Siigh (sculpture), Marthalicia
Mararrita (painting), Micaela Anaya (painting) and others TBA
The "Ladies First: Beyond 28 Days" art exhibition at the Brecht Forum is a
celebration of Black female expression through a visual and vocal dialogue
surrounding the diversity of experiences and journeys of Black Women. Our
stories are linked in time as our journeys are mapped in history. These
are our footprints. Ladies First is a unique opportunity to share, reflect
and identify ourselves within the Black Diaspora.
As you know, AmeriKKKa celebrates Black History Month annually during the
month of February. Our history is deeply rooted far beyond 28 days. We
believe that February is our time of bridging the past with the present.
We believe in the power of art as resistance, art as consciousness, art as
social commentary of our time. As creatively conscious thinkers, we bear
witness to our world and respond in powerful ways. Ladies First is a
momentum in creating awareness within a revolutionary space by celebrating
and honoring Black women within the Diaspora.
Free/RSVP online at
http://brechtforum.org/civicrm/event/info?id=11850&reset=1
***
Friday, February 4 at 7:30 pm
FreEpLay Friday
a performance
presented by Strike Anywhere Performance Ensemble
"The Strike Anywhere Performance Ensemble merges music, theater,
improvisation, and structured composition into a total multi-media
experience--a 'happening' in which art leaps off the wall and into the
seat next to us." --Asbury Park Press
Happening every first Friday, FreePlay Fridays will feature the Strike
Anywhere Performance Ensemble's interdisciplinary ensemble of world-class
musicians, dancers, designers and actors spontaneously creating
performance pieces. Part performance, part creativity lab, the ensemble
will wrap willing audience members into the development of the piece. From
special guests to games and Soundpainting, the evening will be full of
surprises.
Strike Anywhere was established in 1997 by founder and Artistic Director,
Leese Walker. The company is a permanent ensemble of world-class jazz
musicians, modern dancers, designers and actors. Its mission is to promote
empathy, freethinking and greater social awareness through provocative
theatre and educational outreach. Its work is guided by the words of
Bertolt Brecht, "Art is not a mirror held up to reality, but a hammer with
which to shape it." Performers collaborate through an improvisational
process to create politically-charged, original works that address
socially-relevant issues. Following a six-year residence at the Theatre at
St. Clements in Times Square, Strike Anywhere formed an alliance with the
Brecht Forum. From 2003 to the present, Strike Anywhere has produced a
variety of shows and outreach programs at the Brecht Forum, including two
extended runs of 10 Brecht Poems (2003, 2004), and Pocket Full of Change
in 2006. Strike Anywhere has toured extensively. The company has toured
nationally to over 40 venues and has been featured on Radio France, NPR,
WBAI and German Public Radio. The ensemble has appeared at B.A.M.,
American Airlines Theater, The Irondale Center, The Zipper Factory, P.S.
122, St. Clements, Theatre for the New City, Galapagos, and HERE Arts
Center. For more information, please visit http://www.strikeanywhere.info
Contribution--sliding scale: $12/$15/$25
Reserve online at
http://brechtforum.org/civicrm/event/info?id=11830&reset=1
***
Upcoming TOPLAB workshops
Saturday and Sunday, February 12-13: Forum Theater
more info at http://brechtforum.org/civicrm/event/info?id=11844&reset=1
Saturday and Sunday, March 26-27: Cop-in-the-Head
more info at http://brechtforum.org/civicrm/event/info?id=11845&reset=1
Saturday and Sunday, April 16-17: Rainbow of Desire
more info at http://brechtforum.org/civicrm/event/info?id=11846&reset=1
Saturday, Sunday and Monday May 28-30: Invisible Theater
more info at http://brechtforum.org/civicrm/event/info?id=11849&reset=1
Saturday and Sunday, June 11-12: Workshop with Julian Boal
write to TOPLABnyc@gmail.com for more info
June (dates to be announced): Rashomon
write to TOPLABnyc@gmail.com for more info
***
Travel Directions
The Brecht Forum is at:
451 West Street*
(between Bank and Bethune Streets in the far West Village,
1-1/2 blocks north of West 11 Street)
New York City
* Note: West Street is the same as the West Side Highway
Subway
IND Eighth Avenue A, C, or E to 14 Street or BMT Canarsie L to Eighth
Avenue (take a few minutes to look at "Life Underground", Tom Otterness'
series of whimsical bronze sculptures scattered throughout both sections
of the station). Walk down Eighth Avenue (against the traffic) to Bank
Street (at Abingdon Square). Turn right on Bank and walk west to West
Street. Turn right, walk a quarter-block to 451.
IRT Seventh Avenue 1, 2, or 3 trains to 14 Street. Exit at the south (12
Street) end of the station. Walk a short block west, across 12 Street, to
Greenwich Avenue. Turn left and walk one block to Bank Street. Turn right,
walk west on Bank Street to Abingdon Square. Bank Street continues on the
other side of the park; keep walking on Bank Street to West Street. Turn
right, walk a quarter-block to 451.
New Jersey PATH train to Christopher Street. Walk north (with the traffic)
on Greenwich Street to Bank Street. Turn left, walk west on Bank Street to
West Street. Turn right, walk a quarter-block to 451.
(From Penn Station or Port Authority Bus Terminal take the IND Eighth
Avenue A, C or E trains downtown to 14 Street and follow the directions
above. From Grand Central Station take the IRT Lexington Avenue 4, 5 or 6
trains downtown to 14 Street/Union Square and then change to the BMT
Canarsie L train heading toward Eighth Avenue. Follow the directions
above.)
Bus
#8 (Ninth/Christopher Streets crosstown) to Christopher and West Streets,
walk up West Street to 451.
#11 (Ninth and Tenth Avenues): From uptown--to Abingdon Square (at Bethune
Street). Walk south one very short block to Bank Street, turn right, walk
west to West Street. Turn right, walk a quarter-block to 451. No service
from downtown--Abingdon Square is the terminal stop.
#14A (Grand/Essex Streets/Avenue A/Fourteenth Street crosstown) to
Abingdon Square (at Bethune Street). Walk south one very short block to
Bank Street, turn right, walk west to West Street. Turn right, walk a
quarter-block to 451.
#20 (Seventh Avenue and Hudson Street/Eighth Avenue): From downtown--to
Abingdon Square (at Bethune Street). Walk south one very short block to
Bank Street, turn right, walk west to West Street. Turn right, walk a
quarter-block to 451. From uptown--to 12 Street (near St. Vincent
Hospital). Walk a short block west, across 12 Street, to Greenwich Avenue.
Turn left and walk one block to Bank Street. Turn right, walk west on Bank
Street to Abingdon Square. Bank Street continues on the other side of the
park; keep walking on Bank Street to West Street. Turn right, walk a
quarter-block to 451.
Car
Drive west on 11 Street all the way to West Street (West Side Highway).
Turn right for one block, to 451, between Bank and Bethune Streets.
Along the West Side Highway: From downtown--stay to the right and follow
the Highway to 451, between Bank and Bethune Streets. From uptown: Take
the Highway to Clarkson Street (exit left), make a U-turn at Clarkson and
proceed back up the Highway to 451, between Bank and Bethune Streets.
Note that there is no legal parking on many parts of West Street before
6:00 pm, and parking on the surrounding streets is scarce. Fines for
illegal parking are a minimum of $115, and your car could be towed.
Retrieval can cost you as much as $300. Fees at parking lots and garages
can run as high as $40 a day. WE URGE YOU TO USE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.
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