ASU Herberger Mainstage Theatre presents a Festival of New Work
Cloud 8.99 is a performance artwork created and performed by John Tang.
Photo courtesy of Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts.
TEMPE, Ariz. - Beginning April 13, ASU Herberger Mainstage Theatre will present five new works - two original plays and three performance art works - created by some of ASU's brightest master of fine arts theatre students and alumna for its Festival of New Work .
"The energy, commitment and talent that I have observed over the development of these works makes me proud of what these students have accomplished and hopeful about the future of American theatre," says Linda Essig artistic director and chair of the Department of Theatre.
Stolen Children, written by student playwright Kristyn Benedyk, is based on a true story from 1904 when orphans were shipped from New York to Clifton and Morenci Arizona, where racial turmoil erupted between Anglo and Mexican families.
"What followed the children's arrival in Arizona is a story of motherhood and family, corporate pollution of a community, and racial and religious discrimination that is important for us to remember," says Benedyk.
Raw Footage, written by ASU playwriting alum Laurel Haines, is a black comedic expose of a documentary filmmaker who manufactures his own version of heart-tugging "reality." Haines lives in Chicago where she writes plays and musicals.
An Evening of Performance Art includes three original works that wrestle with cultural and historical events and attitudes. Three students worked for two years creating their pieces with senior lecturer Jeff McMahon, a veteran performance artist.
Lindsey Harman will perform her work Portal of Entry , a theatrical deconstruction of the Valley's sex industry told through the voices of prostituted women and their interviewer. It is part of her thesis project "Incarcerated Freedom."
John Tang will perform Cloud 8.99 , one man's journey to find the meaning of life before his obsession takes him over the edge. "This isn't a piece about eliminating suffering from our lives," says Tang. "It's about trying to escape that which is crippling us."
Angela Anna Giron will perform Letters from the State of Chihuahua , a field research-based performance about the feminicidios(murders of women) in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico over the past 14 years. "It's an interpretation of machismo and its tragic consequences in borderland Mexico," says Giron.
All productions contain adult themes and are recommended for mature audiences.
WHEN:
Stolen Children
7:30 p.m. - April 13, 22
6:00 p.m. - April 16
2:00 p.m. - April 24
Performance Art
7:30 p.m. - April 14, 20
9:00 p.m. - April 16
6:00 p.m. - April 23
Raw Footage
7:30 p.m. - April 15, 21
2:00 p.m. - April 17
9:00 p.m. - April 23
WHERE: The Lyceum Theatre, 901 S. Forest Mall on the ASU Tempe campus.
TICKETS: Friday and Saturdays: $20 adults; $18 seniors, faculty, staff and ASU alumni; $5 students. Weekdays: $15 adults; $13 seniors, faculty, staff and ASU alumni; $5 students. Buy-one, Get-one free on the first Friday of any Mainstage production.
INFORMATION: 480-965-6447 or purchase tickets online at http://herbergercollege.asu.edu/tickets .
In addition to the Mainstage Theatre productions of new work, there will be a concurrent series of staged readings at ASU April 14-24. For more information, go to http://theatre.asu.edu , or call 480-965-5337 for more information.
Media Contact:
Denise Tanguay
480.965.7144
denise.tanguay@asu.edu