Chicago – Collaboraction continues to increase the peace in Chicago bringing its free PEACEBOOK fall tour – a festival of theater, dance, music and spoken word all focused on cultivating peace in Chicago – to Kelvyn Park, 4438 W. Wrightwood Ave. in Chicago’s Hermosa neighborhood, Thursday through Saturday, October 19-21, 2017.
Chicago First Lady Amy Rule, hip hop artist and activist Che “Rhymefest” Smith and hundreds of community residents participated in PEACEBOOK last weekend at Englewood’s Hamilton Park.
Who will show up in Hermosa to continue this city-wide discussion about peace?
PEACEBOOK Kelvyn Park kicks off Thursday, October 19 at 6:15 p.m. with a pre-show workshop featuring Sammy Rangel of Life After Hate, followed at 7 p.m. by the Kelvyn Park program of eight short live performances about peace, each seven minutes or less.
On Friday, October 20, meet Luis Crespo, Director of Youth Programming, Collaboraction Theatre Company, and the Collaboraction Kelvyn Park Peacemakers at a pre-show workshop at 6:15 p.m., followed by PEACEBOOK Kelvyn Park at 7 p.m.
On Saturday, October 21, PEACEBOOK begins at 3 p.m. with Collaboraction’s trademark Dome of Dance competition, followed at 4 p.m. by a free community meal and peace panel featuring Chicago peacemakers Amy Williams, Hope Dealer for the Dope Dealer, and Robert Torres of Parents for Peace and Justice, co-moderated by Anthony Moseley, Artistic Director, and Dr. Marcus Robinson, Managing Director, Collaboraction. Show time is 5 p.m.
All PEACEBOOK events are free. For more information or to reserve tickets, visit collaboraction.org/peacebook2017, email [email protected] or call the Collaboraction box office, (312) 226-9633.
Watch Collaboraction’s new Hamilton Park sizzle reel to get a better feel for PEACEBOOK.
PEACEBOOK launched on August 26 at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre with a one-day, marathon of 24 world premiere “prayers for peace.” Selected from more than 100 submissions, the 24 chapters, since divided into three programs comprised of eight short works, were collectively created by more than 200 Chicago artists and peace activists, all intent on creating real connections with Chicagoans in communities around the city.
After the Goodman marathon launch event, the Chicago Defender wrote, “The World Needs PEACEBOOK…a magnificent theatrical experience that pushes the boundaries from sadness within our communities to working successfully as one Chicago.”
The Chicago Tribune noted Collaboraction “carefully curated each program to reflect specific challenges faced by the communities near the park where it will go to next” and “does pique one’s curiosity and appetite for visiting the city’s edges to see the programs in the parks.”
Following are the eight works on tap for PEACEBOOK, October 19-21 at Kelvyn Park:
Barbarism
by Jason Grote, directed by Iris Sowlat
A woman with PTSD and apocalyptic survivor’s guilt takes audiences on an exploration of the gilded cages in her mind as she reveals the fragility of the human spirit.
Conflict
devised by the Collaboraction Teen Peacemaker Ensemble, directed by Luis Crespo
The Collaboraction Teen Peacemaker Ensemble grapples with the real cost of hate in Chicago and its future.
Eckhart Park Echoes
by Nancy Garcia Loza, directed by Juan Castaneda
A peaceful protest by way of storytelling. Garcia Loza’s solo show offers a snapshot of her aunt’s life as it unfolded on a Chicago block for forty years in West Town.
Finding a Loving Motherland
devised by Sami Hussain Ismat
A satirical tragi-comedy about a refugee escaping Syria only to encounter ridiculous bureaucratic and racial discrimination, fear of white supremacy in Trump’s America, and crime in his new neighborhood.
How Long Do I Have To Continue To Prove Myself?
written and performed by Dr. Ada Cheng
The piece examines the process of citizenship ceremony and raises questions about the meaning of home(land) for immigrants, beyond the issue of legalization and naturalization.
Recipe for Peace
devised by Dionne Hawkins
Tune into this cooking show where the host prepares the ingredients to create peace, by the artistic director of the Austin Town Hall Theatre Company.
Vueltas
adapted by Sandra Delgado from the writings of Sammy Rangel
directed by Miranda Gonzalez
Acclaimed Chicago actress Sandra Delgado collaborates with peace activist and TED Talk standout Sammy Rangel, Executive Director and Co-Founder, Life Against Hate, and author of “Fourbears: Myths of Forgiveness,” to tell his inspirational story of hope and redemption.
We’ll Be Doing This Together
devised and performed by Ann Kreitman
This non-traditional, interactive theater piece asks the audience to create gentle and joyful connections between strangers.
Each performance is accompanied by a Chicago DJ who connects the pieces through music. The Kelvyn Park DJ lineup is Julio Bishop (October 19), Cesario Magnifique (October 20) and DJ Shon Roka (October 21).
Kelvyn Park is the second stop in Collaboraction’s 2017 PEACEBOOK fall tour, following its successful first weekend October 5-7 at Hamilton Park in Englewood. The third and final destination is LaFollette Park, 1333 N. Laramie Ave. in Austin, November 2-4, again with its own unique line-up of eight new works. Thursday and Friday shows start at 7 p.m. Saturday begins with the Dome of Dance competition at 3 p.m., free community meal and peace panel at 4 p.m. and performance at 5 p.m.
“In these times of rising homicides and racial tension, we believe in the power of theater to incite empathy, knowledge, dialogue and change around peace in Chicago,” said Collaboraction Artistic Director and PEACEBOOK Festival Director Anthony Moseley. “With over 200 artists from throughout the city and partnerships with the Goodman Theatre and the Chicago Park District, we have established PEACEBOOK as a place for our city to come together around this most critical social issue with our future at stake.”
For PEACEBOOK fall tour updates, visit collaboraction.org, follow the company on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, YouTube or Instagram, or call the Collaboraction box office, (312) 226-9633.
About Collaboraction
Collaboraction (collaboraction.org) collaborates with artists, community activists, and citizens from throughout the city to create original theatrical experiences that push artistic boundaries and explore critical social issues with a diverse community of Chicagoans. Collaboraction has worked with over 3,000 artists to bring more than 60 productions and events to upwards of 250,000 audience members.
Production highlights include Collaboraction’s acclaimed series of Crime Scene productions responding to Chicago’s current crime epidemic, 15 years of the SKETCHBOOK Festival, Sarah Moeller’s Forgotten Future: The Education Project in 2014, 2010’s Chicago premiere of 1001 by Jason Grote, 2008’s world premiere of Jon by George Saunders and directed by Seth Bockley, and 2007’s The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow: an instant message with excitable music by Rolin Jones.
Collaboraction, based on the third floor of Wicker Park’s historic Flat Iron Arts Building with three theatre spaces, is led by Artistic Director Anthony Moseley, Managing Director Dr. Marcus Robinson, and a dedicated staff and board of directors. Collaboraction is supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, Richard H. Driehaus Foundation via the MacArthur Foundation, and the Wicker Park & Bucktown SSA #33 Chamber of Commerce. This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.
For tickets and information, visit collaboraction.org or call (312) 226-9633.
About the Chicago Park District’s Nights Out in the Parks program
Collaboraction’s PEACEBOOK Festival is presented as part of the Chicago Park District’s Night Out in the Parks series, supported by Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Arts programming in neighborhoods across the city advances the goals of the Chicago Park District and the Chicago Cultural Plan. Now in its fifth year, the 2017 Night Out in the Parks series will host over 1,000 cultural events and programs at more than 250 neighborhood parks throughout the city, making community parks a safe haven and hubs of activity. Projects will vary from traditional performances and concerts, to movies, peace rallies, community workshops, nature based programs, dance pieces, festivals and more. The Chicago Park District has partnered with more than 100 arts and community organizations to expand and produce this successful initiative.
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