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Event
Micro-Fest: Philly
One Festival. Three Cities.
From October 2010 through January 2011, the Network of Ensemble Theaters (NET) is hosting a triptych of Micro-Festivals across the United States designed to build a national conversation around ensemble theatermaking. Culminating in Micro-Fest: Philly this two-and-a-half-day festival will investigate ensemble work that blurs the boundaries of genre and discipline.
Micro-Fest is presented in partnership with the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA). Performances and workshops will be held at the Community Education Center (CEC) and Drexel University January 28-30, 2011.
Celeste DiNucci, Marcel Williams Foster, Makoto Hirano, Jamie Merwin, Ashley Sparks, and Thaddeus Squire programmed a diverse array of performances at varying stages of development by emerging and seasoned ensembles.
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:
FRI JAN 28 @ 8pm:
shiFt / transfer
Written by Justin Jain, directed by Rebecca Wright, performers Scott McPheeters, James Ijames, Genevieve Perrier & Leah Walton.
Why do we leave our homes to start new lives? What are we hoping to find when we arrive? How does this affect the generations after us? Based on his life as a first-generation Filipino-American and intertwining stories from his ensemble, theatre artist Justin Jain weaves a tapestry of movement, music, and dialogue that asks these questions.
FRI JAN 28 @ 10pm:
The WORD: A House Party for Jesus
**Reservation Required (via pull-down ticketing menu above); $15 due at door, cash only**
The Elastic Theatre in association with New Paradise Laboratories:
A tent. A preacher. A seriocomic sermon extolling the glories of voyeurism and the perils of playing with gasoline. Brian Osborne creates a dead-on simulation of Marjoe Gortner, the famed child evangelist turned B-movie star. In Osborne's hands, the curly-headed, jive-talking preacher boy becomes a silver-tongued magic man, transforming human frailty into a mind-bending and hilarious meditation on one man's place in a topsy-turvy universe. The WORD is a non-stop, mile-a-minute solo piece created and performed by Brian Osborne of the Elastic Theatre and directed by co-conspirator Whit MacLaughlin of New Paradise Laboratories.
SAT JAN 29 @ 11:30am:
Revolution and a Sandwich
The Shakedown Project:
One girl's quest for revolution in a time when little seems worth fighting for, Claire finds herself in the driver's seat of one of the most popular revolutions going down -- and it encourages eating. A social satire on the internet age of communication featuring an original script by Jeremy Gable with music by Sonni Shine.
SAT JAN 29 @ 7pm - (choose either What Is It? or Punchkapow - these two shows run concurrently)
What Is It?
Various: Multiple Ensembles.
An evening of hybrid performances featuring the work of five different ensembles/solo artists from Philadelphia's underground and experimental performance scene. Lyrical Playground presents and excerpt from their newest show Love, Queens who suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; Fatima Adamu performs Lost at Sea with live cello, flute, and harp; Vince Johnson from Illreality and 5 of his breakers will present an excerpt from Homie Sapiens; Leah Stein Dance Company collaborates with percussionist Toshi Makihara; and a special guest artist(s) from the Fourth Wall Arts Salon will close out the evening with an experiment in sound and rhythm that will have the audience on their feet.
SAT JAN 29 @ 7pm - (choose either What Is It? or Punchkapow - these two shows run concurrently)
Punchkapow
Team Sunshine Performance Corporation:
Following their acclaimed premiere in November, Team Sunshine resurrects Punchkapow, a show for the part of us who sees Bruce Willis walk across the glass in Die Hard and thinks, "I could do that." Team Sunshine Performance Corporation company members Benjamin Camp, Makoto Hirano and Alex Torra explore how individuals wrap themselves in a fantastic distraction, taking a leap from the mundane to the imagined and then slipping, joyfully, into the violent. Punchkapow offers stunning physical acting and kickass fights as two dudes explore their brutal relationship in a world of ninjas, villains and epic battles large and small.
SAT JAN 29 @ 10pm - (choose either The Word or Punchkapow - these two shows run concurrently)
The WORD: A House Party for Jesus
**Reservation Required (via pull-down ticketing menu above); $15 due at door, cash only**
The Elastic Theatre in association with New Paradise Laboratories:
A tent. A preacher. A seriocomic sermon extolling the glories of voyeurism and the perils of playing with gasoline. Brian Osborne creates a dead-on simulation of Marjoe Gortner, the famed child evangelist turned B-movie star. In Osborne's hands, the curly-headed, jive-talking preacher boy becomes a silver-tongued magic man, transforming human frailty into a mind-bending and hilarious meditation on one man's place in a topsy-turvy universe. The WORD is a non-stop, mile-a-minute solo piece created and performed by Brian Osborne of the Elastic Theatre and directed by co-conspirator Whit MacLaughlin of New Paradise Laboratories.
SAT JAN 29 @ 10pm - (choose either The Word or Punchkapow - these two shows run concurrently)
Punchkapow
Team Sunshine Performance Corporation:
Following their acclaimed premiere in November, Team Sunshine resurrects Punchkapow, a show for the part of us who sees Bruce Willis walk across the glass in Die Hard and thinks, "I could do that." Team Sunshine Performance Corporation company members Benjamin Camp, Makoto Hirano and Alex Torra explore how individuals wrap themselves in a fantastic distraction, taking a leap from the mundane to the imagined and then slipping, joyfully, into the violent. Punchkapow offers stunning physical acting and kickass fights as two dudes explore their brutal relationship in a world of ninjas, villains and epic battles large and small.
SUN JAN 30 @ 11:30am
Red Rovers
Headlong Dance Theater:
Mars. An abject landscape. Endless dust, extreme heat and cold. Occasional meteorites. Onto this landscape dropped two rovers, named Spirit and Opportunity. They were designed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and were meant to spend 90 days on the Martian surface before breaking down-- 5 years later, they are still there, collecting data and sending it back to Earth. Red Rovers is new a dance theater-visual art collaboration between Headlong Dance Theater and Chris Doyle, exploring a constellation of ideas: the search for life on other planets, the bonds between robots and with their makers, the eventual genetic modification and robotization of our human bodies, strings of numbers and NASA lingo, propulsion, disability.
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WORKSHOPS; SAT JAN 29 @ 2:30pm; DREXEL UNIVERSITY
Workshops by local and national artists, hosted in partnership with Drexel University. Workshops are open to Festival participants, and are included in your Full Festival Pass on a first come, first served basis; limited capacity. Single ticket admission ($15) to workshops also available for advance purchase.
Workshops include:
First Person Arts: Word Craft Life Raft
Join cardboard constructionist Beth Nixon (www.ramshackleenterprises.net) and poet Emily Abendroth (www.molesnotmolar.com) for an afternoon of genre-busting collaboration. Participants will sculpt with words, write with cardboard, and create an interactive installation of original text and corrugated forms to be shared with the public upon completion of this 2 hands-on workshop. Contribute to this cooperative, imaginative experiment in interdisciplinary. Tools and materials provided, registration required.
Pig Iron Theater Company: Ordinary/Extraordinary
Entrances and Exits -- the wonderful problem of doing nothing in front of an audience. Can we make the audience say: "Nothing is happening, but I am compelled to watch"? Pig Iron Co-Artistic Director Dan Rothenberg revisits some of the theatrical research behind Shut Eye, Pay Up, and Chekhov Lizardbrain. Registration Required.
Strike Anywhere: Soundpainting
Artistic Director, Leese Walker and Ensemble Member, Rolf Sturm (Guitar) will teach a workshop in Soundpainting - the live composing sign language for musicians, dancers, actors, poets, and visual artists working in the medium of structured improvisation. The language was created by New York composer Walter Thompson. At present the language comprises over 800 gestures that are signed by the composer/conductor indicating the type of improvisation desired of the performers. Soundpainting allows a conductor to shape group improvisations in ways that were never previously possible. Strike Anywhere is one of only three theatre companies in the U.S. using this new approach to improvisation. Leese and Rolf are full-time artists and educators and bring a joyful, ensemble-approach to their teaching style. Participants will learn a couple dozen soundpainting gestures and will employ these gestures in a series of compositions by the end of the workshop. Wear clothes to move in and bring an instrument if you play. Registration Required.
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COMMUNITY CONVERSATION; SAT JAN 29 @ 4:30pm; DREXEL UNIVERSITY
Conversation on The Politics of Genre; free and open to Festival participants and the general public on a first come, first served basis; limited capacity.
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ADDITIONAL FESTIVAL INFO:
Micro-Fest: USA is a national regional festival exploring pressing issues facing the ensemble field. The complete festival includes Micro-Fest: Atlanta (October 8-10, 2010) exploring Race, Culture and Aesthetics; Micro-Fest: LA (December 3-5, 2010) exploring New Work Development; Micro-Fest: Philadelphia (January 28-30, 2011) examining hybrid, cross-disciplinary ensemble work. The aim of this project is to highlight ensemble contributions to the field while identifying better ways to discuss and supporting this work.
Micro-Fest: USA is made possible through the generous support of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ford Foundation, the Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles, South Arts and WESTAF.
For media inquires, including press accommodations, interview and media requests, please contact Micro-fest Coordinator Ashley Sparks at 540.558.8744 or ashleyasparkles@gmail.com.
FEATURED ENSEMBLES:
The Elastic Theater | www.elastictheater.com
Headlong Performance | www.headlong.org
Team Sunshine Performance | teamsunshineperformance.weebly.com
The Shakedown Project | www.theshakedownproject.com
SUPPORTING ENSEMBLES:
Gas and Electric Arts | www.gasandelectricarts.org
New Paradise Laboratories | www.newparadiselaboratories.org
olive Dance Theatre | www.olivedancetheatre.org
Pig Iron Theatre Company | www.pigiron.org
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LINKS
Network of Ensemble Theater's official website | www.ensembletheaters.net
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LocationCommunity Education Center
3500 Lancaster Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19104
United States
Categories
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: No |
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