Hip Hop Theater Festival
The Hip Hop Theater Festival is a new annual event.
http://www.hiphoptheaterfest.org/
In six years, the Hip-Hop Theater Festival (HHTF) has grown into one of the most influential outlets showcasing hip-hop performing arts in the country. The Hip-Hop Theater Festival aims to invigorate the fields of theater and hip-hop by nurturing the creation of innovative work within the hip-hop aesthetic. The core of HHTF's programming is its annual Festivals.
Hip-Hop Theater Festival is made possible by through generous support from The Ford Foundation, The Nathan Cummings Foundation, Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, Time Warner, Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour, the National Endowment of the Arts, New York State Council of the Arts, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs and individual supporters like you. HHTF is a participant in the New Generations Program, funded by Doris Duke Charitable Trust/The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and administered by Theatre Communications Group, the national organization for American Theatre.
NEW YORK, STAND UP!
Fresh off it's Chicago & Bay Area runs, June 2006 marks HHTF's 6th Season in New York City, featuring the NY premier of the critically acclaimed Live from the Front starring Jerry Quickley and directed by Tony Award winner reg e. gaines. This year's Festival also features the US Premiere of Brazilian B-Boy Frank Ejara in his work Som do Movimento. This year also marks HHTF's first year at the Public Theatre, where the Festival will continue to bring the best and brightest of multi-disciplinary theater from the Hip-Hop Generation.
HHTF IS PROUD TO SUPPORT:
651 ARTS presentation of LOW: MEDITATIONS TRILOGY PART 1 Created and Performed by Rha Goddess June 8, 9, 10, 2006 8:00pm 651 ARTS presents a new work by internationally-acclaimed hip hop theater artist Rha Goddess. The new work, LOW: Meditations Trilogy Part 1, depicts the dark, but very human tragedy of mental illness in contemporary culture. Goddess uses a stunning fusion of the poetics, music, and movement of Hip-Hop to bring us the story of Lowquesha - a young woman's all too common isolated journey through the mental health system. Friday, June 9, join us for a special community event exploring issues of mental health and illness. Tickets: $25 / $20 Student & Senior Tickets Available / Group Discounts Available To purchase tickets call the Kumble Theater Box Office at 718.488.1624
OPENING NIGHT-TUESDAY, JUNE 20
NYC PREMEIRE
OPENING NIGHT TUESDAY, JUNE 20 , 7:30 PM
Jerry Quickley's Live from the Front Directed by reg e. gaines Un-embedded and uncensored, hip-hop spoken word artist and radio correspondent Jerry Quickley went to Iraq, in the days before and during "shock and awe". Quickley went to Baghdad and beyond to cover the pending, then, actual war for KPFK and the Pacifica Radio Network. He brings that unique insight to Live From The Front, which combines music, poetry, video and powerful performance style to tell the story of his travels to, and ultimate expulsion from, Iraq during the conflict. - Also Saturday, June 24 at 7:30 PM
The Public Theater
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
Opening Night Party @ SUTRA w/ Music by DJ Center & DJ Reborn
Doors Open @ 9:00pm
Come join the Festival Family and get your groove on w/ the sultry sounds of DJ Center and DJ Reborn at one of the Festival's favorite homes away from home Sutra. Festival revilers can come for free if attend the performance or not. Just get down with us on this special night and celebrate being alive, loving live and living free in these times!
Sutra - 16 First Avenue @ 1st Street FREE!
w/ Drink Specials All Night Long, 21 and over a must
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 21
7:30PM & 9:30PM
7:30PM - Mainstage Shorts
A Night of Excerpted Works Featuring some of NYC's most talented playwrights and performers from the hip-hop generation.
Hollis Mugley's Only Wish by Keith Josef Adkins tells the story of a young Black man determined to save his pregnant wife and suspiciously hyperactive twins from the shackles of a community immersed in consumerism, technology and the American diet.
Skinimin12 written & performed by Jennifer Cendaña Armas "get away from the mirror/reflection in the window/you're nothing any special" a woman's last glance in the mirror 12 seconds to leave the house the mis-images and stories a body won't forget a play excerpt about the routine taunts and chants we tell ourselves to make it out the door everyday
Little Book of Battles, written & performed by Chastity Dotson, investigates the minds and hearts of several characters amidst the blaring headlines and the grinding pulse of war. As the nation remains divided along lines of class, race and personal identity, new uprisings and incidents of violence leave the President with no choice but to allow the country to declare war on itself.
Five 'Til
written & performed by Edwin Lee Gibson (2006 Obie Award winning actor). Directed by Daphne Richards Inspired by the story of Gary Graham, a.k.a. Shaka Sankofa, the play, Five 'Til, takes place in notorious, Huntsville State Penitentiary, Huntsville TX, five minutes before the execution of Dante Wallace, a reformed criminal, accused of a crime he did not commit. What happens when a capital punishment case becomes about convicting someone rather than the guilty?
Robocop 525, choreographed & perfromed by Kenichi Ebina, is a solo piece mixing dance, mime, robot and illusion to tell the fantastic and futuristic story of a day in the life of a Robot Policeman.
Free? written & performed by Kristina Wong — With more street cred than you can shake a pair of Hammer pants at, Kristina Wong swoops into the NYC Hip Hop Theater Festival to riff on notions of freedom in times that would make Joe McCarthy gasp. Excerpts include a satirical homage to "save the world in five minutes" spoken word, a Flashdance tribute, and an explanation (or un-explanation) of why she prefers life in the almighty closet.
AND featuring the Winner of Voices on Blast Competition!
The Public Theate
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
9:30 PM
CRITICAL BREAKS STAGED READING SERIES
Retrospect 4 LifeDirected by Nicco Annan, Written by Dominique Morisseau An abortion clinic pulsates on the East-Side of Detroit. Outside- a protest is raging. Inside - five women in post-abortion wait to be released. Somewhere in the middle, lines are crossed and limits are tested until only the truth can survive.
NYTW 4th Street Theater
83 East 4th Street
Tickets: $10.00, group discounts available
Critical Breaks, HHTF's program dedicated to developing new works is sponsored by Time Warner as part of their ongoing commitment to supporting diverse, new voices in American theater.
THURSDAY, JUNE 22
4.30PM, 7:30PM & 9:30PM
4:30 PM - 6:30 PM
The New School Artists Conversation w. Jerry Quickley
Moderated by: Marinieves Alba, International Hip Hop Exchange
Hip Hop, Theater and International politics. Artists will discuss how art, politics and hip hop are being fused in the U.S. and abroad, and how it all factors into their artistic processes.
The New School
65 fifth ave (room 229)
Wolff Conference Room
FREE!
7:30PM
Mainstage
Rock, Paper, Scissors
Written by Ben Snyder
With additional material by Ari Issler
Directed by Louis Moreno
An evening of minimum wages, mandatory minimums, and pre-emptive strikes. From a poetry class at Spofford Juvenile Detention Center, take the Brooklyn bound number 2 train, and get off at the front lines of Baghdad. Played to sold out houses at Center Stage New York, P.S.122, New York Theater Workshop, and HBO's U.S. Comedy Arts Festival.
The Public Theater
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
9:30 PM
CRITICAL BREAKS STAGED READING SERIES
Etymology of a Bird
Writtn by Zakiyyah Alexander
Brooklyn in the summer. B-boys break, MC's freestyle, the struggle to make it is never ending and amidst it all two kids from the hood fall in love. One mistake from a cop and everything can change. Can a Bird from the hood fly?
NYTW 4th Street Theater
83 East 4th Street
Tickets: $10.00, group discounts available
Critical Breaks, HHTF's program dedicated to developing new works is sponsored by Time Warner as part of their ongoing commitment to supporting diverse, new voices in American theater.
FRIDAY, JUNE 23
2:00PM, 4:30PM, 7:30PM & 9:30PM
2:00PM
Master Class
olive Dance Theatre
Instructors: Raphael Xavier, Master Teacher & Jamie Merwin, Assistant
This is a technique class/workshop in the Hip-hop form of Breakin'. Participants will learn the building blocks of Breakin'. This class is beneficial for all levels of Breakers, from beginner to advance; to train strength building vocabulary such as: up top, drops, footwork, freezes, text and foundation. The workshop will allow dancers of this technique to perfect these movements and dancers of all genres to cross-train and develop strength. class format: warm-up & technique followed by open 1:1 questions.
The AILEY Studios
at The Joan Weill Center for Dance
405 West 55th Street @ 9th Avenue
This project is partially supported by a grant from Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour, a program developed and funded by the Heinz Endowments; the William Penn Foundation; the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency; and The Pew Charitable Trusts; and administered by Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation.
4:30 — 6:30PM
From Da Street to Da Stage Full Circle Soul
Instructors: Rok-A-Fella & Kwik Step
Through a unique fusion of Hip-hop Theater, Kwik and Rok will help students understand the aesthetics of Hip-hop expression and fuse it with lyrics/text of a monologue or a dialogue. Class will begin with basic training in Poppin' and Breakin' styles, followed by the exploration of theatrical interpretation within the movements. Students are encouraged to bring any monologue they may want to see layered with Hip-hop dance. Video footage will be shown.
The AILEY Studios
at The Joan Weill Center for Dance
405 West 55th Street @ 9th Avenue
Tickets: $35.00 (Hip Hop Theater Participants receive 10% discount!)
To purchase tickets, call 212-405-9500 or visit http://www.alvinailey.org.
7:30PM
Mainstage
The Jack Ya Body Solo Dance Series
featuring Frank Ejara's Som do Movimento — US Premiere
Using boogaloo, locking and popping techniques, Brazilian solo artist Frank Ejara takes the audience into an imaginary world, in which sound and movement fuse, with the sound creating movement and movement creating sound.
Rennie Harris' PrinceScareKrow's
Road to the Emerald City (excerpt)
PrinceScareKrows Road to the Emerald City is a work in progress outlining the personal journey of Rennie Harris in the city of Philadelphia aka Emerald City. The work is being developed on stage as an improvisation and eventually will be set as a full evening length. PSK is comprised of existing solo work (s) Endangered Species and Lorenzo's Oil of Facing Mekka, which serves as stepping a block for a new solo work.
The Public Theater
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
9:30PM
Critical Breaks Staged Reading
The Vacant Sky
Directed by Jill DeArmon
Written by Anthony Roman
The Vacant Sky tells the story of soldier Fredrick Roberts, who returns from the war in 2004 to find his wife missing. This is a common occurrence that happens to soldiers during times of war. As the tale unfolds, we discover the origins and endings of every character we meet. Held together by the narrator, Orelio, the story jumps from time to time, showcasing significant moments to the story of these characters, and their lives.
NYTW 4th Street Theater
83 East 4th Street
Tickets: $10.00, group discounts available
Critical Breaks, HHTF's program dedicated to developing new works is sponsored by Time Warner as part of their ongoing commitment to supporting diverse, new voices in American theater.
http://www.hiphoptheaterfest.org/
In six years, the Hip-Hop Theater Festival (HHTF) has grown into one of the most influential outlets showcasing hip-hop performing arts in the country. The Hip-Hop Theater Festival aims to invigorate the fields of theater and hip-hop by nurturing the creation of innovative work within the hip-hop aesthetic. The core of HHTF's programming is its annual Festivals.
Hip-Hop Theater Festival is made possible by through generous support from The Ford Foundation, The Nathan Cummings Foundation, Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, Time Warner, Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour, the National Endowment of the Arts, New York State Council of the Arts, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs and individual supporters like you. HHTF is a participant in the New Generations Program, funded by Doris Duke Charitable Trust/The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and administered by Theatre Communications Group, the national organization for American Theatre.
NEW YORK, STAND UP!
Fresh off it's Chicago & Bay Area runs, June 2006 marks HHTF's 6th Season in New York City, featuring the NY premier of the critically acclaimed Live from the Front starring Jerry Quickley and directed by Tony Award winner reg e. gaines. This year's Festival also features the US Premiere of Brazilian B-Boy Frank Ejara in his work Som do Movimento. This year also marks HHTF's first year at the Public Theatre, where the Festival will continue to bring the best and brightest of multi-disciplinary theater from the Hip-Hop Generation.
HHTF IS PROUD TO SUPPORT:
651 ARTS presentation of LOW: MEDITATIONS TRILOGY PART 1 Created and Performed by Rha Goddess June 8, 9, 10, 2006 8:00pm 651 ARTS presents a new work by internationally-acclaimed hip hop theater artist Rha Goddess. The new work, LOW: Meditations Trilogy Part 1, depicts the dark, but very human tragedy of mental illness in contemporary culture. Goddess uses a stunning fusion of the poetics, music, and movement of Hip-Hop to bring us the story of Lowquesha - a young woman's all too common isolated journey through the mental health system. Friday, June 9, join us for a special community event exploring issues of mental health and illness. Tickets: $25 / $20 Student & Senior Tickets Available / Group Discounts Available To purchase tickets call the Kumble Theater Box Office at 718.488.1624
OPENING NIGHT-TUESDAY, JUNE 20
NYC PREMEIRE
OPENING NIGHT TUESDAY, JUNE 20 , 7:30 PM
Jerry Quickley's Live from the Front Directed by reg e. gaines Un-embedded and uncensored, hip-hop spoken word artist and radio correspondent Jerry Quickley went to Iraq, in the days before and during "shock and awe". Quickley went to Baghdad and beyond to cover the pending, then, actual war for KPFK and the Pacifica Radio Network. He brings that unique insight to Live From The Front, which combines music, poetry, video and powerful performance style to tell the story of his travels to, and ultimate expulsion from, Iraq during the conflict. - Also Saturday, June 24 at 7:30 PM
The Public Theater
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
Opening Night Party @ SUTRA w/ Music by DJ Center & DJ Reborn
Doors Open @ 9:00pm
Come join the Festival Family and get your groove on w/ the sultry sounds of DJ Center and DJ Reborn at one of the Festival's favorite homes away from home Sutra. Festival revilers can come for free if attend the performance or not. Just get down with us on this special night and celebrate being alive, loving live and living free in these times!
Sutra - 16 First Avenue @ 1st Street FREE!
w/ Drink Specials All Night Long, 21 and over a must
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 21
7:30PM & 9:30PM
7:30PM - Mainstage Shorts
A Night of Excerpted Works Featuring some of NYC's most talented playwrights and performers from the hip-hop generation.
Hollis Mugley's Only Wish by Keith Josef Adkins tells the story of a young Black man determined to save his pregnant wife and suspiciously hyperactive twins from the shackles of a community immersed in consumerism, technology and the American diet.
Skinimin12 written & performed by Jennifer Cendaña Armas "get away from the mirror/reflection in the window/you're nothing any special" a woman's last glance in the mirror 12 seconds to leave the house the mis-images and stories a body won't forget a play excerpt about the routine taunts and chants we tell ourselves to make it out the door everyday
Little Book of Battles, written & performed by Chastity Dotson, investigates the minds and hearts of several characters amidst the blaring headlines and the grinding pulse of war. As the nation remains divided along lines of class, race and personal identity, new uprisings and incidents of violence leave the President with no choice but to allow the country to declare war on itself.
Five 'Til
written & performed by Edwin Lee Gibson (2006 Obie Award winning actor). Directed by Daphne Richards Inspired by the story of Gary Graham, a.k.a. Shaka Sankofa, the play, Five 'Til, takes place in notorious, Huntsville State Penitentiary, Huntsville TX, five minutes before the execution of Dante Wallace, a reformed criminal, accused of a crime he did not commit. What happens when a capital punishment case becomes about convicting someone rather than the guilty?
Robocop 525, choreographed & perfromed by Kenichi Ebina, is a solo piece mixing dance, mime, robot and illusion to tell the fantastic and futuristic story of a day in the life of a Robot Policeman.
Free? written & performed by Kristina Wong — With more street cred than you can shake a pair of Hammer pants at, Kristina Wong swoops into the NYC Hip Hop Theater Festival to riff on notions of freedom in times that would make Joe McCarthy gasp. Excerpts include a satirical homage to "save the world in five minutes" spoken word, a Flashdance tribute, and an explanation (or un-explanation) of why she prefers life in the almighty closet.
AND featuring the Winner of Voices on Blast Competition!
The Public Theate
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
9:30 PM
CRITICAL BREAKS STAGED READING SERIES
Retrospect 4 LifeDirected by Nicco Annan, Written by Dominique Morisseau An abortion clinic pulsates on the East-Side of Detroit. Outside- a protest is raging. Inside - five women in post-abortion wait to be released. Somewhere in the middle, lines are crossed and limits are tested until only the truth can survive.
NYTW 4th Street Theater
83 East 4th Street
Tickets: $10.00, group discounts available
Critical Breaks, HHTF's program dedicated to developing new works is sponsored by Time Warner as part of their ongoing commitment to supporting diverse, new voices in American theater.
THURSDAY, JUNE 22
4.30PM, 7:30PM & 9:30PM
4:30 PM - 6:30 PM
The New School Artists Conversation w. Jerry Quickley
Moderated by: Marinieves Alba, International Hip Hop Exchange
Hip Hop, Theater and International politics. Artists will discuss how art, politics and hip hop are being fused in the U.S. and abroad, and how it all factors into their artistic processes.
The New School
65 fifth ave (room 229)
Wolff Conference Room
FREE!
7:30PM
Mainstage
Rock, Paper, Scissors
Written by Ben Snyder
With additional material by Ari Issler
Directed by Louis Moreno
An evening of minimum wages, mandatory minimums, and pre-emptive strikes. From a poetry class at Spofford Juvenile Detention Center, take the Brooklyn bound number 2 train, and get off at the front lines of Baghdad. Played to sold out houses at Center Stage New York, P.S.122, New York Theater Workshop, and HBO's U.S. Comedy Arts Festival.
The Public Theater
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
9:30 PM
CRITICAL BREAKS STAGED READING SERIES
Etymology of a Bird
Writtn by Zakiyyah Alexander
Brooklyn in the summer. B-boys break, MC's freestyle, the struggle to make it is never ending and amidst it all two kids from the hood fall in love. One mistake from a cop and everything can change. Can a Bird from the hood fly?
NYTW 4th Street Theater
83 East 4th Street
Tickets: $10.00, group discounts available
Critical Breaks, HHTF's program dedicated to developing new works is sponsored by Time Warner as part of their ongoing commitment to supporting diverse, new voices in American theater.
FRIDAY, JUNE 23
2:00PM, 4:30PM, 7:30PM & 9:30PM
2:00PM
Master Class
olive Dance Theatre
Instructors: Raphael Xavier, Master Teacher & Jamie Merwin, Assistant
This is a technique class/workshop in the Hip-hop form of Breakin'. Participants will learn the building blocks of Breakin'. This class is beneficial for all levels of Breakers, from beginner to advance; to train strength building vocabulary such as: up top, drops, footwork, freezes, text and foundation. The workshop will allow dancers of this technique to perfect these movements and dancers of all genres to cross-train and develop strength. class format: warm-up & technique followed by open 1:1 questions.
The AILEY Studios
at The Joan Weill Center for Dance
405 West 55th Street @ 9th Avenue
This project is partially supported by a grant from Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour, a program developed and funded by the Heinz Endowments; the William Penn Foundation; the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency; and The Pew Charitable Trusts; and administered by Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation.
4:30 — 6:30PM
From Da Street to Da Stage Full Circle Soul
Instructors: Rok-A-Fella & Kwik Step
Through a unique fusion of Hip-hop Theater, Kwik and Rok will help students understand the aesthetics of Hip-hop expression and fuse it with lyrics/text of a monologue or a dialogue. Class will begin with basic training in Poppin' and Breakin' styles, followed by the exploration of theatrical interpretation within the movements. Students are encouraged to bring any monologue they may want to see layered with Hip-hop dance. Video footage will be shown.
The AILEY Studios
at The Joan Weill Center for Dance
405 West 55th Street @ 9th Avenue
Tickets: $35.00 (Hip Hop Theater Participants receive 10% discount!)
To purchase tickets, call 212-405-9500 or visit http://www.alvinailey.org.
7:30PM
Mainstage
The Jack Ya Body Solo Dance Series
featuring Frank Ejara's Som do Movimento — US Premiere
Using boogaloo, locking and popping techniques, Brazilian solo artist Frank Ejara takes the audience into an imaginary world, in which sound and movement fuse, with the sound creating movement and movement creating sound.
Rennie Harris' PrinceScareKrow's
Road to the Emerald City (excerpt)
PrinceScareKrows Road to the Emerald City is a work in progress outlining the personal journey of Rennie Harris in the city of Philadelphia aka Emerald City. The work is being developed on stage as an improvisation and eventually will be set as a full evening length. PSK is comprised of existing solo work (s) Endangered Species and Lorenzo's Oil of Facing Mekka, which serves as stepping a block for a new solo work.
The Public Theater
425 Lafayette Street, off Astor Place
Tickets: $25 regular, $10 students & seniors, group discounts available
9:30PM
Critical Breaks Staged Reading
The Vacant Sky
Directed by Jill DeArmon
Written by Anthony Roman
The Vacant Sky tells the story of soldier Fredrick Roberts, who returns from the war in 2004 to find his wife missing. This is a common occurrence that happens to soldiers during times of war. As the tale unfolds, we discover the origins and endings of every character we meet. Held together by the narrator, Orelio, the story jumps from time to time, showcasing significant moments to the story of these characters, and their lives.
NYTW 4th Street Theater
83 East 4th Street
Tickets: $10.00, group discounts available
Critical Breaks, HHTF's program dedicated to developing new works is sponsored by Time Warner as part of their ongoing commitment to supporting diverse, new voices in American theater.