The award-winning investigative theater company The Civilians will present a series of "Talk Backs" during the world-premiere run of the company's newest show, IN THE FOOTPRINT: The Battle Over Atlantic Yards, performing now through December 11 at the Irondale Center, 85 S. Oxford St. in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.
Tuesday evening (8 pm) and Saturday matinee (2 pm) performances of IN THE FOOTPRINT will be "Neighborhood Nights" featuring post-show discussions. (Brooklyn residents will receive a special discount to these performances. For more info, visit www.thecivilians.org). The talk backs will feature an assortment of guests with expertise and first-hand experience with the play's subject matter: the years-long controversy surrounding the plan to develop the 22-acre Atlantic rail yards in Brooklyn, on a site that is a mere two blocks from the Irondale Center. The discussions will focus on such relevant topics as urban planning, Brooklyn history, affordable housing, eminent domain, and how decisions that affect the shape of New York City are made.
The "Neighborhood Nights" schedule and panelists are, as follows:
--November 20 at 2PM: Michelle de la Uz, Executive Director of the Fifth Avenue Committee
--November 23 at 8PM: Conversation with the Artists (creators, cast)
--November 30 at 8PM: Stephen Levin, New York City Council Member
--December 4 at 2PM: Daniel Goldstein, Co-founder of DDDB and last resident to leave The Footprint
--December 7 at 8PM: LetiTia James , New York City Council Member
Additional post-show discussions with special guests are scheduled, as follows:
November 18 at 8PM: Conversation with the Artists
November 29 at 7PM: Brad Lander, New York City Council Member
December 2 at 8PM: Tom Angotti, Professor of Urban Studies & Planning at Hunter College
December 6 at 7PM: Conversation with the Artists
December 9 at 8PM: Stacey Sutton, Urban Planning Professor at Columbia's Architecture Grad Dept.
Written and directed by Steven Cosson ("Gone Missing," "This Beautiful City,") and with music and lyrics by Michael Friedman ("Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson," "This Beautiful City"), IN THE FOOTPRINT is a lively theatrical chronicle of the widely-publicized conflicts surrounding the largest land development project in Brooklyn's history at the Atlantic Avenue rail yards.
Featured in the cast of IN THE FOOTPRINT are Matthew Dellapina (The Civilians' "(I Am) Nobody's Lunch"), Greg McFadden ("The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial" on Broadway), Colleen Werthmann ("Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson" at The Public Theater, The Civilians' "Gone Missing"), Billy EuGene Jones ("Passing Strange," "A Raisin in the Sun" on Broadway), Donnetta Lavinia Grays ("In The Next Room," "Well" on Broadway) and Simone Moore.
IN THE FOOTPRINT is inspired by interviews conducted by The Civilians with real-life players in the years-long controversy about the Atlantic Yards Project, which will bring high-rise housing and a basketball arena to the rail yards in downtown Brooklyn. The different perspectives represented include those of Brooklyn residents, political leaders including LetiTia James and Marty Markowitz, members of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn including Daniel Goldstein , union members, and Project supporters such as Bertha Lewis of ACORN. IN THE FOOTPRINT is an examination of how the fate of the city and its dwellers is decided in present-day New York and what might be learned from this ongoing epic of politics, money, and the places we call home.
This show is the culmination of a two-year long company investigation. The Civilians' creative team listened to Brooklynites from Borough Hall to barber shops to gain insights into both the Atlantic Yards drama and the ongoing story of gentrification in the city. The company previously presented a week of sold-out workshop performances at the Brooklyn Lyceum in 2008 under the title BROOKLYN AT EYE LEVEL.
IN THE FOOTPRINT will perform November 12 through December 11: Tuesday - Saturday at 8PM, Monday: November 22, 29 & December 6 at 7PM, Saturday Matinees: November 20 & December 4 at 2PM. General admission ($35) and student tickets can be reserved by visiting www.irondale.org or calling Ovationtix at (866)811-4111. For groups of ten or more, please call (718)230-3330.
For more information, visit www.thecivilians.org.
IN THE FOOTPRINT is produced in association with The Exchange and is part of Exchange NYC 2010-11, a city wide season of new work by America's most innovative theatre companies. Tickets for IN THE FOOTPRINT are available as part of the X-Pass, Exchange NYC's flexible season pass. For more information and to purchase the X-Pass: www.exchangenyc.org
About The Civilians
Led by Artistic Director Steve Cosson, The Civilians - which begins its 10th anniversary season with IN THE FOOTPRINT -- is a center for investigative theater, supporting the development and production of new theater from creative inquiries into the most vital questions of the present. The Civilians expands the scope of American theater and champions innovation by tackling complex and under-explored subjects, enabling artists to enrich their creative processes through in-depth interaction with their topics, diversifying artistic voices and audiences, and integrating theater with new media. The creation of work may involve community residencies, travel, face-to-face conversations, extensive research, and other investigative means. The Civilians was founded in 2001 and since have supported the creation of 12 original works. The Civilians' projects have been produced at numerous theaters in New York including The Public Theater and Vineyard Theatre; nationally at Center Theatre Group, A.R.T., La Jolla Playhouse, HBO's US Comedy Festival, Studio Theatre, and Actors Theatre of Louisville among others. Works by the company have toured extensively to arts presenters and festivals with presentations in over 40 cities nationally and internationally. The company's past work has been featured in The New York Times top ten list and received a Fringe First Award as well as Lucille Lortel, Drama Desk and Drama Guild nominations. The Civilians' work is published by Dramatists Play Service, Oberon Books, Playscripts, and Ghostlight Records.
