International Hispanic Theatre Festival of Miami hopes to welcome all – not just Spanish speakers

“Murga Madre,” from Uruguay, will run July 9-11 at the Miami-Dade County Auditorium. (Photo courtesy of the International Hispanic Theatre Festival of Miami)

Mario Ernesto Sánchez, founder and producing artistic director of Teatro Avante and the International Hispanic Theatre Festival of Miami, believes it’s time for audiences to return to the theater.

His festival missed its 35th anniversary last year because of the pandemic, and he’s ready for it to return before a live stage.

“I do respect people who got on the bandwagon and did visual presentations during COVID-19. But I have fought for theater all my life in the way we are doing it,” Sánchez says. “An actor needs to hear the audience response, to hear the applause to know if it is good, and the audience, at the same time, needs to see the actor breathe and sweat.

“Virtual theater?  I have seen it and it doesn’t do anything for me.”

So, beginning July 8 and continuing Thursdays to Sundays through July 25, troupes from six countries will present seven plays at two Miami locations: the Carnival Studio Theater at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., and the On.Stage Black Box Theatre at Miami-Dade County Auditorium, 2901 W. Flagler St.

Sánchez envisions the return as a surreal experience: “You are not going to believe it. You are going to think, ‘I don’t believe that I’m sitting here.’ But this is a way for us to be welcoming our lives back again.”

Of course, planning a full-scale theater festival at such a precarious time hasn’t been without its nerve-wracking moments, he confesses. He says he was very methodical and went “by the book” to safely bring theater troupes from Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico and Uruguay – and he had to cancel plans for troupes from Spain and Argentina because of pandemic-related issues. He replaced those productions with two different plays by Comedia Nacional from Montevideo, Uruguay.

In order to perform, the actors must be vaccinated against COVID-19. “And they are all OK with it. One of the actors from Chile needs to be vaccinated as soon as he lands in the U.S. They are all aware of what is happening and what they need to do,” he says. “We are not over the pandemic, but luckily there have been many vaccinated against the contagious disease and the numbers have gone down.”

Still, the festival director says he intentionally chose smaller productions. Audiences will see monologues and two- to four-person plays. “Nothing larger, but all wonderful,” he promises. His company, Teatro Avante, representing the United States, is the largest in the festival, with six actors playing eight roles.

“We are the biggest cast because we are local,” he says.

The Miami-based company will present a world premiere written by contemporary Cuban playwright Abel González Melo for the festival and directed by Sánchez. The work, “Ubú Pandemia,” will be performed at 8:30 p.m. July 22-24 and 5 p.m. July 25 at the Arsht center.

Realizing that audiences may not be ready for a comic approach, the work, “Ubú Pandemia,” approaches the epidemic as a farce, Sánchez says.

“You can say almost anything in a farce, and it’s so unimaginable in a way that it brings a smile,” he says. “This is not a light comedy, but it is created to entertain and to bring laughs in a serious way.”

The 90-minute play is about a King named Ubú who founded the island Uba – “not Cuba, but Uba,” Sánchez says, a hint of a chuckle coming through his voice.

The king’s citizens tell him that a pandemic is headed to the island. “He claims that is impossible, that it cannot happen on his island of Uba,” Sánchez says. Convinced of their immunity, the king launches a campaign to build up his country in the midst of the disaster.

The plays will all be performed in Spanish, with English supertitles.

“I’ve been presenting Teatro Avante plays with supertitles since 1995, but yet we haven’t been very successful in getting non-Spanish speakers to come,” he says.

Sánchez is hoping that changes this year – that people are so hungry for theater that those who typically don’t attend Hispanic productions will make the festival a destination.

 

WHAT: International Hispanic Theatre Festival of Miami.

WHEN: Thursdays through Sundays, from July 8-25, 2021

WHERE: Carnival Studio Theater at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, 1300 Biscayne Blvd.; and On.Stage Black Box Theatre at Miami-Dade County Auditorium, 2901 W. Flagler St.

COST: At the Arsht, tickets cost $24; at the auditorium, tickets cost $20; prices don’t include extra fees

SAFETY PROTOCOLS: At the Arsht, face coverings are required; at the auditorium, vaccinated attendees are not required to wear face masks and guests have optional staggered arrival times

INFORMATION: Teatroavante.org/copia-de-2019; Arshtcenter.org and Miamidadecountyauditorium.org 

 

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Third Horizon Film Festival offers ‘biggest lineup yet’

“Stateless” is one of the works featured in this year’s Third Horizon Film Festival. (Photo courtesy of Third Horizon Film Festival)

The Third Horizon Film Festival is shining a spotlight on the islands in celebration of Caribbean History Month.

This year’s seven-day event, hosted in collaboration with Pérez Art Museum Miami’s Caribbean Cultural Institute, is offering what event cofounder Jason Jeffers called its “biggest lineup yet.”

That’s because of its hybrid format, showcasing films in-person and online – as well as parties and panel discussions – through July 1, 2021,

“Going virtual has afforded us the opportunity to screen so many more films than we ordinarily would,” Jeffers said.

Though the hybrid format has its advantages, it also presented some challenges to the fundamental goals of the festival.

“Going online was difficult because it meant sacrificing that intimacy that is at the core of what we do,” Jeffers said. “We really prize getting together in smaller spaces to watch films and to talk about them in an honest, unflinching way. But we think that we’ve struck a good balance between in-person events and the way we’re choosing to screen online.”

Jeffers hopes the films serve as an opportunity to spark conversations and as a vehicle to reshape perceptions about those from the region.

“I think these are stories that the world needs to hear,” Jeffers said. “The Caribbean has so often been framed as merely a tourist destination, as a paradise, and little more than a place for people from the so-called first world to escape and frolic and forget about their busy lives to be waited on hand and foot by the smiling locals. So the work that we do is about confronting that perspective. It’s about reframing the Caribbean as it exists in the popular imagination.”

Jeffers also hopes the festival will ultimately be seen as a stepping-stone toward uniting on common ground.

“We think it’s really important to showcase global solidarity, and to understand that somebody from another country on the other side of the world, their people, their ancestors, may have been faced with the same predicament,” Jeffers said. “We’re just a film festival, but we hope by sharing our stories with each other, that we can forge some connections, and some insights in a way where they’re most needed.”

The following is a small sample of this year’s featured films. Check out the festival website for the full schedule.

‘Party Done’

One man’s journey led to an onscreen examination of crime in Trinidad & Tobago – and the bold tactics used by colorful TV host Ian Alleyne, who is putting his life on the line to stop it.

Film director Ian Harnarine said his grandfather was murdered in Trinidad more than 10 years ago and no one was ever caught.

“After that, I started to really pay attention to crime in Trinidad, and that’s when I discovered Ian Alleyne, the subject of the documentary and his program,” Harnarine said.

At one point, Harnarine realized that he may have been in over his head.

“We were following this television host as he tries to catch criminals. We were so concerned about the actual production that, in hindsight, when we were looking at the footage, I thought, ‘Wow, we’re in a really bad situation. Everyone’s wearing a bulletproof vest, except for us.’ Maybe I should have thought that through a little bit more,” he said, with a laugh.

Getting residents to speak about crime despite an overall atmosphere of fear was another challenging aspect.

“We tried countless times,” Harnarine said. “People were interested, but the minute we turned on the camera they would say no. No one trusted the police, for fear of being found out. And that’s where Ian Alleyne came in. He was somebody willing to take the criminals on. He didn’t care so much about what other people [thought]. He’s very fearless in that respect.”

‘Stateless’

Michele Stephenson’s “Stateless” takes a look at Rosa Iris’ campaign to spotlight the often-brutal treatment of Haitians in the Dominican Republic.

“If you’re someone who doesn’t know anything about the island, you’re going to learn a lot,” said Stephenson, who directed the film. “We’re highlighting the never-ending resistance that Black women have been a part of since our ancestors set foot on the hemisphere.”

“Stateless” provides historical context to some of the issues that Iris contends with, including the 1937 genocide of Haitians by the Trujillo government and the 2013 revoking of citizenship of Dominican-born children of Haitian descent.

While making the film was a challenge, Stephenson said that her skin color allowed her to gain unfettered access to those who may have otherwise been reluctant to talk.

“For me, my privilege of being a light-skinned Haitian, as a woman of Haitian descent, was quite obvious when I was in the Dominican Republic,” she said.

Those advantages, however, came with a cost.

“That was probably the most emotionally difficult time for me,” said Stephenson. “They didn’t know that I was Haitian, and I intentionally hid that to provide the space for a transparent conversation. But it also meant that I had to hide a part of who I am. It took a big toll on me. I’d spend half a day in my hotel room crying and trying to detox from the hatred that was in my presence, and not speaking out because I wanted … to capture the depth of the hatred that the Haitian community faces.

“So that was really very difficult, but it doesn’t compare to what [they] have to deal with on a daily basis in the Dominican Republic.”

‘Doll Thomas’

Artist and filmmaker Ashanti Harris offers a peek into the fascinating life of Doll Thomas, a former slave who shakes off her shackles to become a wealthy entrepreneur.

“I want people to know that this person existed,” Harris said. “And I want people to have some kind of understanding of not just how complex this person’s life is, but also her contribution to Black history.”

Known for her shrewd business sense, the influential socialite didn’t hesitate to buck trends to achieve what she wanted. “She had this really crazy personality,” said Harris.

The film also explores the connection between Scotland and Guyana, which many people may not realize exists.

“If you walk down streets in Scotland, they’re named after different places in the Caribbean. If you walk down streets in Guyana, they’re named after different places in Scotland,” Harris said. “But it’s still not something that’s actively recognized and considered, especially in relation to people’s present-day experiences of both Guyana and Scotland. So, I just wanted to make this kind of invisible history visible in some way.”

‘Studio 17: The Lost Reggae Tapes’

If you’re a reggae fan, then you’re in for a treat.

Producer Reshma B pulls back the curtains and reveals how pioneers of this genre pushed a locally produced sound and launched it front row and center onto the world stage.

“In my normal day-to-day job of being a music journalist, a lot of what I do is cover up-to-date music, so this was a privilege for me to work on the film,” said the reggae and dancehall curator for TIDAL. “It’s really taught me about the roots of reggae and how it originated.”

The film also explores the role of the Chin family and how their humble studio evolved into VP Records, helping to propel the careers of reggae megastars along the way, including Bob Marley and The Wailers, Dennis Brown and Gregory Isaacs.

“If you are into Jamaican music, you know how studios play a really big part in Jamaica,” Reshma B said. “That’s where all the local music was made. Talented producers were making different sounds and there was no name for it.

“Eventually, there was ska and then ska went to rocksteady, and rocksteady turned to reggae and then we have the reggae songs of today. And, of course, now you can’t go to Jamaica without thinking about reggae music.”

Rhythmic styles and sounds continued to evolve into what is now known as the dancehall subgenre. Joel Chin, head of artists and repertoire at VP Records, helped steer the careers of a cadre of well-known musicians including Beenie Man, Sean Paul, Wayne Wonder, Sizzla and Beres Hammond. When he was murdered in 2011, it rocked the reggae community to its core. Despondent, his father, Clive, turned to the one thing that helped: music.

At the urging of his son’s oft-repeated requests, he decided to finally take on the task of digitizing original unreleased studio recordings from their studio archives.

“He wanted to do something in honor of Joel,” Reshma B said. “That’s when I met Clive. He was in the process of all this. “

She was amazed at what the archives contained: “How do you have a Dennis Brown song just lying around?” I [thought], ‘Are you kidding?’ My mind was blown as a music journalist.”

As she produced the film, she realized how important it was for reggae fans to bear witness to this crucial part of music history.

“We didn’t accept any funding from places like record labels because I wanted to tell the real story,” she explained. “In the film, there’s a lot of sensitive things that come up … but by not accepting funding, we had the freedom to tell the story as it unveiled, and we didn’t have to edit out anything that was true.

“And that was important to me. Having integrity in telling the story.”

 

WHAT: Third Horizon Film Festival, in collaboration with Pérez Art Museum Miami’s Caribbean Cultural Institute

WHEN: Through July 1, 2021

WHERE: In-person events are taking place at two Miami locations: Nite-Owl Drive-In, 1400 NE First Ave., and Pérez Art Museum Miami, 1103 Biscayne Blvd.; online screenings are available on the website or via the festival’s app on Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick or Apple TV  

COST: Varies; virtual tickets start at $5

INFORMATION: Thirdhorizonfilmfestival.com

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Review: Area Stage debuts a leaner, imaginatively immersive ‘Annie’

The orphan girls in Area Stage’s “Annie” sing about their daily burdens in “It’s the Hard Knock Life.” (Photo courtesy of Giancarlo Rodaz)

After its popular outdoor production of “Shrek the Musical” in January – and after lengthy downtime during the pandemic – Area Stage is inviting audiences to its indoor space at South Miami’s Shops at Sunset Place to experience a smashing new production of “Annie.”

The brainchild of associate artistic director Giancarlo Rodaz, this production of the long-running 1977 Broadway hit is like no other you may have seen before, even if “Annie” happens to be your favorite musical.

For one thing, as its poster cheekily notes, this time “Annie” is being performed by just eight actors, with nary a scene-stealing kid in sight. Rodaz’s “Annie” casting decisions would seem to satisfy even late actor-comedian W.C. Fields, the curmudgeon who famously advised against working with animals or children: Annie’s stray dog pal, Sandy, is played by a puppet crafted from weathered footwear.

For another, Area’s “Annie” stands out because Rodaz – who directed, choreographed and designed the show’s set and lighting – has transformed the theater’s space into a Prohibition-era speakeasy. The “Little Orphan Annie” comic strip that inspired the show launched in 1924, and the musical itself is set in 1933, the year a constitutional amendment kicked Prohibition’s alcohol ban to the curb.  So the playful, era-appropriate speakeasy setting feels both creative and logical.

The fun begins at the box office, where you’re given a password to gain entry into the theater space. Depending on what you pay for your ticket (prices range from $30 for students to $200 for an onstage table seating three), you’ll find yourself sitting on a riser, a balcony, at the bar or right in the thick of the action, where actors might sit or stand on your table or chat with you at intermission.

The faux brick walls, made from hand-scored and hand-painted foam, are adorned with advertising posters (one touts Harold Gray Chewing Tobacco, a nod to the creator of the Annie comic strip) and portraits of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his cabinet, who pipe up in the musical in an unexpected way.

Four fine musicians – musical director-pianist Rick Kaydas, violinist Tony Seepersad, percussionist Ryan Hecker and reed player Frank Capoferri – are perched on the bandstand behind the bar, warming up for the show by accompanying different actors who croon preshow tunes.

In a deliberate nod to the musical’s Depression-era story, Rodaz delivers “Annie” in a theater-of-the-poor style, with few set pieces and simple yet highly effective props.

The orphanage run by the child-loathing Miss Hannigan, for example, typically features a long row of beds occupied by Annie and her put-upon pals. Here, the orphan “girls” (played by female and male cast members) crowd onto and around a single large box that stands in for the beds, increasing the sense of claustrophobia and deprivation.

The young artists in the cast, a blend of relatively recent college graduates and a couple finishing up their schooling, are musical actors with powerful yet nuanced voices. When they’re singing together, the eight performers sound like many more, and (kudos to Orlando Hall’s sound design) the balance between the vocalists and the band is excellent.

Staci Stout, a petite actor with long curly hair nowhere near the red typically sported by girls in the title role, plays 11-year-old Annie as an optimist with an unshakable faith that her long-gone parents will return to claim her. Plucky and resilient as she sings “Tomorrow” and the melancholy “Maybe,” the likable Stout makes you forget that she’s an adult playing a child.

The other actors play multiple roles, popping up as an orphan here or a resident of the Hooverville homeless encampment there, but each gets a key featured role as well.

Frank Montoto is the bald billionaire industrialist Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks, a man so busy running an empire that he never paused to reflect on his loneliness.  Montoto’s rendition of “Something Was Missing” is one of the show’s loveliest moments.

Katie Duerr, who also serves as the show’s second music director, plays Warbucks’s ultra-efficient secretary Grace Farrell, a woman who understands what her boss needs far better than he does. Warbucks has long been her secret crush, and when a glimmer of mutual attraction surfaces, Duerr plays it with a beautiful balance of subtlety and sunshine bursting through the clouds.

Miss Hannigan, the booze-loving, child-loathing orphanage matron usually portrayed by middle-aged actresses with a flair for comedy, is here played by a mister. Imran Hylton is a tall, lanky Black actor who transforms into a woman courtesy of a turban, a dress-like vest and heels made for dancing. The costume part is the work of designers Constanza Espejo and Maria Banda-Rodaz, but this fabulous-funny Miss Hannigan is a collaborative effort by Hylton and his director.

John Mazuelos plays Miss Hannigan’s conniving brother, Rooster, with Annette Rodriguez as his floozy girlfriend, Lily St. Regis. With Hylton, they sing an exuberant “Easy Street,” imagining a lush life if they pull off a con pretending to be Annie’s missing parents, thus claiming a $50,000 reward. Mazuelos also delivers the show’s most chilling moment, pulling a switchblade as he explains how he’ll get rid of Annie once he has the dough.

As Roosevelt, who calls on the FBI to help find Annie’s parents, Isis Palma is heard but not seen as the portraits of the president and his cabinet cleverly come to life.

One necessary note for those emerging more hesitantly from pandemic life: Area’s “Annie” is really immersive. Though your temperature is taken at the box office, widespread use of masks and anything resembling social distancing were simply not happening within the theater space during a recent performance.

That said, “Annie” is a welcome tonic after a long live theater drought. Resilience, optimism and caring for others are just some of its resonant thematic charms. And Rodaz’s vision makes this interpretation special.

WHAT: Area Stage Co.’s “Annie,” a musical by Charles Strouse, Martin Charnin and Thomas Meehan

WHERE: Black Box Theatre at The Shops at Sunset Place, 5701 Sunset Drive, South Miami

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays and 5 p.m. Sundays, through July 4

COST: $30-$200

INFORMATION: 305-666-2078; Areastage.org/annie

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Review: M Ensemble’s ‘Cowboy’ emotionally connects past and present

Playwright Layon Gray also directed and stars as deputy U.S. marshal Bass Reeves in The M Ensemble’s “Cowboy.” (Photo courtesy of Christa Ingraham)

Playwright Layon Gray has a gift for turning a wide range of stories from Black history into engaging, thought-provoking 21st century drama.

Gray’s “Kings of Harlem,” about the professional New York Renaissance basketball team of the 1920s and ’30s, inaugurated The M Ensemble’s new space at Liberty City’s Sandrell Rivers Theater in 2017, winning four Carbonell Awards (including “Best Production of a Play”).

“Kings of Harlem” and Gray’s play, “Cowboy,” which premiered at the 2019 National Black Theatre Festival, are being developed as feature films. And his Off-Broadway play about World War II’s Tuskegee Airmen, “Black Angels Over Tuskegee,” is aiming for a Broadway transfer in 2022-23.

In the meantime, a new M Ensemble production of “Cowboy” has just opened, marking the 50-year-old company’s return to live indoor theater with a full audience.

Gray, who won a directing Carbonell for staging “Kings of Harlem,” is a triple threat in this “Cowboy”: He wrote, directed and stars in the play.

The New York-based Gray plays Bass Reeves, a real-life lawman who served in the Oklahoma Territory from 1875 to 1907 as the first Black deputy U.S. marshal west of the Mississippi. Reeves is said to have served as the inspiration for the character of the Lone Ranger and arrested more than 3,000 criminals in his long career, living to tell many a tale.

The one in “Cowboy” centers on Levi Colton (played by Reginald L. Wilson) and brother Gus (Charles Reuben Kornegay), an on-the-run pair headed for Mexico.  The developmentally disabled Gus is wanted in connection with the murder of a white man aboard a train. Reeves and Grant Johnson (Jaerez Ozolin), his half-Native American, half-Black deputy, have tracked the pair to an Oklahoma Territory saloon owned by Silas Cain (Isaac Beverly).

In his role as playwright, Gray heightens the tension by removing the possibility of escape. A storm and possible tornado are bearing down on Silas’ place so, for better or worse, the hunters and their quarry are trapped together.

Of the five men, only Silas was born after the end of slavery. The others have vivid, painful memories of enslavement, cruelty and familial loss — memories that shaped the men they have become, memories that linger and torment.

Deftly, Gray has the men share character-revealing stories.

Bass’ tales document his wiliness as a lawman, but an especially heartbreaking one is about the way his mother coped with being expected to nurse her enslaver’s babies. Grant speaks of the Trail of Tears walked by his Chickasaw mixed-raced father and Creek mixed-race mother, when Native Americans were forced from their lands.

Levi revisits his 20-year search for Gus after the younger brother, brain-damaged at age 7 from being hit in the head with a brick by an overseer, was sold away as a child. Gus, who toggles between the childlike adult and an imaginary companion he calls Frank, becomes the center of two markedly different reenacted versions of the crime aboard the train.

Gray, who is also credited with sound and projection design, utilizes Mitchell Ost’s excellent atmosphere-establishing set and lighting (plus additional projection design) inventively and, near the end of the play, the set has a star turn of its own. Costume designer Shirley Richardson, who is also The M Ensemble’s executive director, dresses the characters with Old West flair.

Working with the author-director, the cast of mostly New York-based actors (Beverly is a South Floridian) vividly brings Gray’s characters to life.

Wilson’s Levi is intense and wary, dedicated to protecting his long-lost brother at all costs. Kornegay’s Gus is a chameleon, more so than anyone including Levi knows. Ozolin’s Grant is a man of relatively few words but nonetheless a real presence. Beverly’s Silas serves as the play’s comic relief, a function the actor handles winningly.

The multitasking Gray is a memorable Bass Reeves, observant and clever and two steps ahead of everyone else. His speeches are key to the play’s richness and to the way it emotionally connects past and present. Occasionally, for all the actors, the sound design becomes more overwhelming than the underscoring it’s intended to be, so the audience needs to listen intently in order to mentally assemble all the puzzle pieces of Gray’s plot.

One more thing: The title refers to yet another illustration of slavery’s legacy, a story that’s key to the play. After experiencing “Cowboy,” you may never hear the word the same way again.

 

WHAT: M Ensemble production of “Cowboy” by Layon Gray

WHERE: Sandrell Rivers Theater, 6103 NW Seventh Ave., Miami

WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, through June 27

COST: $16 in advance, $21 at the door

INFORMATION: 305-200-5043; themensemble.com

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Miami Jewish Film Festival connects a Black and Jewish shared experience

Black Jewish community leader Tamar Manasseh is the focus of Brad Rothschild’s documentary, “They Ain’t Ready for Me.” (Photo courtesy of Menemsha Films)

There’s a Jewish concept of “tikkun olam,” which in Hebrew means “repairing the world,” and doing so in the pursuit of social justice, says Igor Shteyrenberg, executive director of the Miami Jewish Film Festival.

In its 24th edition, the film festival – set for April 14 through 29 – is introducing a new program that significantly represents the concept of tikkun olam.

The “Building Bridges/Breaking Barriers” program was designed to demonstrate the power that exists in the connection of Black and Jewish communities during this time of rising racism and anti-Semitism, Shteyrenberg says.

“The Miami Jewish Film Festival was built on diversity, inclusion and, especially, tolerance,” he says. “Opposing one form of racism means opposing all forms of racism and if we, the Jewish community, expect wider society to stand by our side in fighting anti-Semitism, then we must stand up and be counted when it comes to fighting racism towards the Black community.”

In its entirety, the festival will offer 145 films, through a mix of virtual and in-person screenings. Out of these, five feature films and one short film make up the “Building Bridges” schedule, including “A Crime on the Bayou,” directed by filmmaker Nancy Buirski and executive-produced by entertainer John Legend.

(Video courtesy of Miami Jewish Film Festival)

Buirski, who is of Jewish heritage, says she has forever been aware that many Jewish people feel a connection with African-Americans and their struggle. Her documentary tells the story of a bond formed between an unjustly arrested Black man, Gary Duncan, and Richard Sobol, a Jewish attorney who represented him in 1966 in Louisiana.

“Other than a certain sensitivity that many Jews have to others who are treated badly with intolerance, I think there is a general sensitivity in the Jewish culture to these race issues,” Buirski says.

“Building Bridges” will also feature filmmaker Brad Rothschild’s documentary, “They Ain’t Ready for Me,” which focuses on Tamar Manasseh, who is Black and Jewish and the founder of Mothers/Men Against Senseless Killing in Chicago. Manasseh started the group, she says, after gang violence killed two 13-year-old Black boys in her neighborhood. She began sitting on a street corner to establish a constant presence meant to diffuse escalating gun violence in the community – and others started to join her, eventually giving out free food while acting as watchdogs, mentors and mediators.

Manasseh says her heritage also makes a statement.

“I live in a neighborhood full of Black people, not a neighborhood full of Jews. There’s no better advocate for the Jewish community for people in my neighborhood who rarely see someone who is Jewish that lives among them,” she says. “For me, it is about taking the mystery out of Judaism for people who never come in contact with Jews, and me representing the Jewish community in the Black community, and vice versa.”

In the spirit of inclusion, festival organizers have made other changes as well. Shteyrenberg says the COVID-19 pandemic made them rethink how to reach more people safely. That means live events outdoors, more virtual offerings, and free access to all films.

“We didn’t want there to be a financial restriction that kept people away from experiencing the arts. What we didn’t want to have happen is to have a cultural arts experience that had to be a privilege,” Shteyrenberg says

Live events will include the opening- and closing-night film presentations on April 14 and April 29 at the North Beach Bandshell’s open-air amphitheater in Miami Beach, and an under-the-stars screening with socially distanced outdoor seating at the Miami Beach Jewish Community Center on April 17. Additionally, films will be shown on various days at the Carpool Wynwood Cinema, the neighborhood’s new drive-in theater. Attendees must reserve a space for live events.

Meanwhile, the virtual screenings will be available to viewers in the state of Florida, with 32 of the films accessible nationwide. The “Building Bridges” films will only be screened online.

Though the  program may be new, the thread of inclusion that runs through the festival isn’t, Shteyrenberg says.

“Film truly is an empathy machine. And, at the end of the day, that’s what the Miami Jewish Film Festival is about – this building of cultural bridges,” he says. “If we can inspire by these stories, and the community becomes more open-minded or wants to learn about another culture and its people, that’s a tremendous victory for us.”

 

WHAT: Miami Jewish Film Festival

WHEN: April 14-29

WHERE: Live events will take place at the North Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; Miami Beach Jewish Community Center, 4221 Pine Tree Drive; and Carpool Wynwood Cinema, 2418 N. Miami Ave. Find virtual screenings at the official website. 

COST: Free; live events require RSVP

INFORMATION: miamijewishfilmfestival.org

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Companies create a fresh, imaginative round of digital theater

Margery Lowe portrays poet Emily Dickinson in the solo show, “The Belle of Amherst,” a coproduction of Actors’ Playhouse and Palm Beach Dramaworks. (Photo courtesy of William Hayes)

For all the live theater losses during the pandemic – canceled seasons, vanished jobs, the inability to gather – a year away from the stage has also fostered creative alternatives. Collaborations, explorations of different forms, a deep dive into what theater is and should be have all been part of this unintended intermission.

This week, two new, created-in-South-Florida productions are about to debut.

*On April 2, Palm Beach Dramaworks in West Palm Beach and Actors’ Playhouse in Coral Gables are presenting a digital coproduction of William Luce’s 1976 solo show, “The Belle of Amherst.” Starring Carbonell Award-winning actor Margery Lowe as poet Emily Dickinson, the play will be available to view at any time, streaming through April 6.

*Meanwhile on April 3-4, Theatre Lab, the professional company based on Florida Atlantic University’s campus in Boca Raton, will launch the world premiere of Miami playwright Vanessa Garcia’s audio play, “Ich Bin Ein Berliner” – as a socially distanced, enhanced listening experience at the amphitheater outside its University Theatre. Then, from April 5-May 23, Theatre Lab will stream audio-only and audio-with-visual versions.

Both presentations are prime examples of creative collaboration.

‘BELLE OF AMHERST’

Working with other South Florida companies is something Dramaworks producing artistic director William Hayes has advocated since serving as president of the Florida Professional Theatres Association (FPTA) in the 2010s. He and late GableStage artistic director Joseph Adler presented the world premiere of Joseph McDonough’s “Ordinary Americans” at both theaters in late 2019-early 2020.

“When I was president of FPTA, I tried to encourage collaboration vs. competition,” Hayes says. “I thought we could set a new tone if two theaters that didn’t share audiences could join forces.”

Hayes has known Actors’ Playhouse artistic director David Arisco for a long time and wanted to work on a new collaboration with “someone I know and trust, someone with integrity.”

For his part, Arisco says: “Sharing is good. We share a region but not an audience. I think we’d be foolish not to keep this going in the future.”

Consulting with Arisco, Hayes chose “The Belle of Amherst” and cast Lowe, who had previously played Dickinson in another Dramaworks world premiere by McDonough, “Edgar and Emily.”

“I had been thinking about ‘The Belle of Amherst’ for Margery for several years, though she didn’t know it,” says Hayes, who has worked with Lowe numerous times. “She’s the right essence, the right age, has an understanding of Dickinson’s poetry like no one I’d known. When I read the play, I heard Margery’s voice.”

Arisco, who has also directed Lowe, likewise appreciates the qualities she brings to the role.

“Most people think of Emily Dickinson as this recluse, this strange girl who wrote poetry, even though she was so full of love and life,” Arisco says. “She was a mature woman and she was girlish, and Margery is like that as an actor.”

Directed by Hayes, the $30,000 production was captured by three cameras over several days on the Dramaworks stage, with strict COVID-19 safety protocols in place and no audience in attendance. The company’s award-winning design team – set designer Michael Amico, costume designer Brian O’Keefe, lighting designer Kirk Bookman and sound designer Roger Arnold – evoked the poet’s world in 19th-century Amherst, Mass.

Interest in Dickinson (1830-1886), whose vast body of work was almost all published posthumously, has been stirred most recently by the Apple TV+ series “Dickinson” and movies such as “A Quiet Passion” (2016) and “Wild Nights With Emily” (2018).

“Everybody takes ownership of her,” Lowe says. “But, ultimately, I was playing William Luce’s Emily.”

Lowe, whose height and hair color are similar to Dickinson’s, arrived for her first day of rehearsals with the entire two-hour script memorized. Although she had played “a more heightened, stylized” version of the poet in “Edgar and Emily,” Lowe took a deep dive into Dickinson’s poetry, letters and life story as she prepared to take on a role originated by and identified with the late Julie Harris.

“Biographies of Emily Dickinson present completely different points of view, and I think she’d like that she’s an enigma,” Lowe says. “To play Luce’s Emily, I went to her words, through her poetry and letters. I wanted to know if I could see how she felt … What surprised me was her sense of humor. She was a bada**, mischievous, witty. She messed with people.”

“The Belle of Amherst” will be available free of charge to Dramaworks and Actors’ Playhouse subscribers. Anyone else who wants to watch will pay $30, with the proceeds benefiting both theater companies.

Hayes and Arisco are hoping that, as with their previous digital efforts during the pandemic, the production will continue growing their audiences throughout South Florida and beyond.

“I think we should be filming one or two of our productions a year to broaden our audience outside of our state,” Hayes says.

“This helps expand our reach and helps us be there for people who aren’t comfortable coming back to the theater yet,” adds Arisco. “It was a very positive experience to get inside a theater, film the play and learn more about that process.”

‘ICH BIN EIN BERLINER’

With Theatre Lab’s “Ich Bin Ein Berliner,” the collaboration was between Garcia and producing artistic director Matt Stabile. The two artists grew up at the same time (he’s 42, and she turns 42 on the night of her play’s premiere) in different Miami neighborhoods, and they had worked together previously on smaller projects.

When Garcia came to him with her idea – a play about her reaction to and subsequent fascination with the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall – it was Stabile who suggested she try writing it as an audio play.

“Zoom theater to me is pretty rough, but I wanted to get people working and commission stuff that would be useful post-COVID,” Stabile says. “I directed 35 shows for the Arts Radio Network. I knew that audio plays and podcasts are getting more popular.”

Adds Garcia: “I hadn’t thought of it as an audio play per se. Audio and radio plays weren’t on my radar. But I once worked for a writer who does radio plays for the BBC. And when I started writing, I thought, ‘This is super fun.’”

With poignant insight, contextual richness and artfully placed humor, “Ich Bin Ein Berliner” uses Garcia’s personal story to contrast the sudden freedom of those in the formerly divided Berlin with the continuing oppression in her parents’ Cuban homeland, which she likens to “an Eastern Bloc country so close to us.”

Garcia plays herself in “Ich Bin Ein Berliner,” traveling through time from the day in fifth-grade Spanish class that she heard about the wall coming down to today.  Elena María García and Lindsey Corey portray her teachers, with Krystal Millie Valdes as her sister, Nicole; Diana Garle as her best friend, Josefina; Gaby Tortoledo as their classmate, Sofia, and the younger version of Garcia’s mother Jackie (whose voice is also heard in the play); and Carlos Alayeto as the playwright’s husband, Ignacio.

After Stabile delivered microphones to the cast, the actors recorded their roles separately and safely. Then the director led other Theatre Lab artists in creating the companion visual elements for the enhanced version of the play – animated cartoon and graphic novel-style drawings, photographs drawn from Garcia’s treasure trove of family photos, footage of Garcia in the final scene.

For each of the three live amphitheater presentations during the kickoff weekend, audiences are limited to 50 masked and socially distanced ticket-buyers. A set created by Theatre Lab’s Michael McClain and live music will enhance the experience.

Providing weeks of work to South Florida artists and expanding Theatre Lab’s reach were two key factors in Stabile’s decision to commission and premiere Garcia’s play.

“Our theater seats 95, so in a standard run we can play to about 500 a week for four weeks,” Stabile says. “We think we can get nearly 8,000 people’s ears and eyes [on the piece] doing it this way.”

Garcia says it was “a blessing” to get a pandemic commission, knowing her play would “go out into the world.” Doing “Ich Bin Ein Berliner” in this way “is its own thing,” but she acknowledges it may be a stepping-stone in a continuing evolutionary process.

Stabile, for one, thinks a live fully staged version of the show could be for Garcia what Heidi Schreck’s “What the Constitution Means to Me” was for her – a major hit merging the personal and the political.

“You write some things and think, ‘OK,’” Garcia says. “This feels like an engine. It’s not stopping.”

“The Belle of Amherst” is a digital coproduction from Palm Beach Dramaworks in West Palm Beach and Actors’ Playhouse in Coral Gables, streaming April 2-6; tickets cost $30 and benefit both companies (subscribers to either company may view the play free of charge); Palmbeachdramaworks.org or 561-514-4042, ext. 2.

“Ich Bin Ein Berliner” is a world premiere audio play produced by Theatre Lab in Boca Raton, available in three ways: the audio-only and audio-with-visual companion versions stream from April 5-May 23; and a live enhanced listening experience will take place at the amphitheater outside University Theatre on the campus of Florida Atlantic University, 777 Glades Road, Boca Raton; those performances are at 6:30 and 9 p.m. April 3 and 6:30 p.m. April 4; tickets cost $5 for audio-only, $15 for audio-with-visual companion, $30 for the live event; Fauevents.com or 561-297-6124.

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GableStage to begin new chapter with Bari Newport at the helm

Bari Newport and her rescue poodle, Maxwell, are relocating from Maine to sunny South Florida. (Photo courtesy of Magnus Stark)

For more than two decades, GableStage and producing artistic director Joseph Adler were intertwined, forming the celebrated Coral Gables theater’s DNA.

Working out of an intimate 138-seat space at the historic Biltmore Hotel, the Brooklyn-born, Miami Beach-raised Adler delivered Carbonell Award-winning theater that was reflective of his personality, values and aesthetic. More often than not, an Adler play was edgy, intellectually and emotionally provocative, delivered at a consistently high level.

Then came the pandemic, just as Adler was about to open his production of Arthur Miller’s “The Price.” The theater and the world shut down in mid-March, and on April 16, 2020, Adler lost his 18-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

While mourning one of South Florida theater’s most influential leaders, the GableStage board filled a programming void with Engage@GableStage, featuring fresh and free short, digital content from diverse artists.

But the board’s most significant task – carried out with a search committee that included Guthrie Theater artistic director Joseph Haj and actor-writer-director Teo Castellanos – was to select Adler’s successor. A national search yielded 85 applicants, with the pool then narrowed to 25, then 10, then five … then one.

Starting April 1, the new leader at the helm of GableStage will be Bari Newport, who has served for the past nine years as producing artistic director of the Penobscot Theatre Co. in Bangor, Maine.

“Joe’s legacy is one of daring excellence. I’m a different person, a different generation, a woman … The lifespan of an arts organization has many chapters,” Newport observes. “I am bold and daring in ways that are both similar to and different from Joe.”

A dynamic woman with brown eyes, dark brown hair and an artist’s sense of personal style, Newport, 45, was born in Los Angeles. Her family moved to different parts of the country whenever her father’s job with United Parcel Service required a transfer, so the change that inevitably accompanies a life working in regional theater became familiar early on.

She fell in love with the art form as a little girl, when her parents took her to see touring productions of “Annie” and “Babes in Toyland” at the historic Palace Theater in Columbus, Ohio.

She recalls this piece of advice from her mother: “If you want to be an actress, you have to be an expert in theater.”

So, around the age of 12, after the family had relocated to Stamford, Conn., Newport spent three years volunteering mostly in the office at Stamford Theatre Works. That led to summer internships at age 16 and 17 at the Westport Country Playhouse, followed by two summers at Massachusetts’ prestigious Williamstown Theatre Festival, where she worked as an acting apprentice and directing intern in the mid-1990s. It was all in service of the immersion her mother had encouraged.

Newport completed her undergraduate training as an actor at the University of Southern California, earning a bachelor of fine arts degree in theater in 1997, then a master of fine arts degree in theater from The University of Iowa in 2000.

She then began the peripatetic regional-theater career that would lead her to become the fifth artistic director – and first woman – to head the 47-year-old Penobscot Theatre Co., which makes its home at the Bangor Opera House. Her professional stops along the way have included literary management, directing and producing work at theaters such as Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre and Horizon Theatre Co., California’s Pasadena Playhouse, and the Fort Myers-based Florida Repertory Theatre.

As happy as she has been in Maine, and as much as she has achieved there, Newport viewed the chance to become GableStage’s second leader as “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” She’s not a Latinx artist, nor does she speak Spanish, but she’s eager to dig into South Florida’s unique diversity.

“One of my biggest dreams is having the opportunity to work with a much more diverse population and to serve a multicultural audience,” Newport says.  “I’m curious and excited to delve into their stories.”

The search committee and GableStage board members who chose her are certain Newport is the right person for the job.

“We wanted someone who would embrace the diversity of Miami, someone who would have their own voice, be the leader, have their own sense of creativity and style,” says longtime board chairman Steven M. Weinger. “People are going to see something new. The reason we had to make a change is sad. But it’s good for an organization to update itself.”

Adds board member David A. Coulson: “We were looking for someone with artistic ability and the practical skills to successfully run a theater. Joe did the job of three people.”

Board member Roz Stuzin is looking forward to the kind of work the new producing artistic director will choose to create at GableStage.

“She’s looking at edgy, exciting, diverse plays,” Stuzin says. “We’ll be able to bring new playwrights and different voices to the stage. I think we’ll be very proud.”

Two of the artists who served on the selection committee agree.

Castellanos, founder of Miami’s D-Projects, appeared at GableStage in the 2011 production of “The Brothers Size,” written and directed by Oscar winner Tarell Alvin McCraney. The way Newport forged creative relationships with the Penobscot Nation, the Native American community for which the theater was named, impressed him – as did Newport herself.

“She interviewed wonderfully. I called Steve [Weinger] right after it was over and said, ‘This is the one!’” says Castellanos, who adds, “I believe it’s time for women and people of color to be in charge.”

Those who worked with Newport in the early days of her career saw the drive and talent that would land her the artistic director jobs at Penobscot and GableStage.

Tony-nominated artistic director Sheldon Epps was running the Pasadena Playhouse when Newport reached out to key Los Angeles-area artistic directors asking to meet with them. Epps was the only one who responded, and he became a key mentor when she served as literary manager and artistic associate from 2009 to 2010. That relationship was formalized when he nominated her for a 2009 New Generations Program grant, in which established theater leaders mentored younger artists on the same career path.

“I immediately recognized a tremendous passion for our work in the theater, drive and a kind of healthy ambition that I thought would take her far and be useful to me and my work at the Playhouse … She was also very tenacious, in a charming yet persistent manner,” recalls Epps, who is now at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C.

Citing Newport’s instincts, insight, intelligence, sense of community and enthusiasm-inspiring energy, Epps adds that “she has always had great taste in material, recognizing both what is good and what has the potential to be good. The latter is especially important when dealing with new work.”

Jason Parrish, Florida Repertory Theatre’s associate artistic director, reported to Newport and was directed by her in 2006-2007. He points to her gift for establishing community partnerships and for winning over artists.

“We wanted to do the first regional production of Steve Martin’s ‘The Underpants,’ and she thinks outside the box. She sent bloomers to him and his agent when she was trying to get the rights,” he notes, and the ploy worked – Newport directed the production, to strong reviews.

Moving to Maine to run a theater hadn’t been on Newport’s radar. But she thinks fate or destiny conspired to draw her there.

In 2010-2011, she was at the Alliance Theatre working on the musical, “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County,” by Maine native Stephen King and rocker John Mellencamp. At the time, she was in a long-distance relationship with her now-husband, Magnus Stark, a Swedish-born photographer who had been her neighbor at Pasadena’s Victorian-era Castle Green. They were doing cross-country visits between Pasadena and Atlanta when he got an invitation to be part of an exhibition at The University of Maine’s Zillman Art Museum – which happens to be across the street from the Penobscot Theatre.

Newport became aware of the Penobscot job opening thanks to her friend, Nathan Halvorson, then serving as interim artistic director. When she went to interview in Bangor, where King’s blood-red, Victorian-style mansion is a tourist attraction, she asked what the word “Penobscot” meant. She knew it referred to the Native American Penobscot Nation, located about 8 miles up the Penobscot River, but she says no one questioning her that day knew the answer.

“I found out it means: people who live where the water turns the rocks white,” Newport says. “I decided then to make a relationship with the Penobscot Nation and tell Penobscot stories. That’s what helps make regional theaters distinctive.”

During her nine years at the company, Newport spearheaded artistic, facility, audience and financial growth.

The theater’s budget more than doubled, from $850,000 to $1.8 million. The inside of the 350-seat Opera House was refurbished, and an old firehouse became a scene shop. In 2012, Newport launched an endowment fund, which became fully funded with a $1million donation in 2020. She grew the audience from 30,000 to 40,000 (with some theatergoers coming from Canada) and added a seventh show to the season.

Among more than four dozen shows produced during her time at Penobscot, Newport staged the regional premiere of King’s “Misery” and the Maine premiere of Tracy Letts’ Pulitzer Prize-winning “August: Osage County.” She produced the Maine premiere of the Tony Award-winning musical, “Fun Home,” and worked with playwright Travis Baker on five world premieres.

Jen Shepard, Penobscot’s executive director, has also acted in a number of Newport-directed productions.

“As an artistic director, she’s really good at focusing on the moment, at seeing larger implications of a bigger picture that doesn’t even exist yet,” Shepard says.  “As a director, she’s one of the most intense people I’ve ever met – joyful, focused and passionate. She’s unflinchingly, fiercely, unwaveringly dedicated. She has left us in a stronger position than when she came.”

Newport is well aware of the “bigger picture” to come at GableStage. She didn’t know Adler well but met him at the annual Florida Professional Theatres Association auditions. She was 26, then working at Florida Rep, and noticed an older man with flowing white hair holding forth, surrounded by other artistic directors standing in a circle, listening.

“Every year after that, I became part of the circle,” she remembers.

She also traveled to see Adler’s productions of Martin McDonagh’s “The Lieutenant of Inishmore” in 2007 and Samuel D. Hunter’s “The Whale” in 2014, and understands full well the legacy she’ll be carrying forth.

Currently taking a deep dive into the region and its arts community as she listens and begins to forge connections, Newport is full of plans.

She intends to announce a season by June 1 and wants to kick it off with a splash in October. She has two large projects in what she calls her “idea box” and hopes to open and close next season with them, “if we can rally ourselves to produce them in the way they deserve.” She wants to establish a Joe Adler legacy campaign, raising money to “scale up” GableStage.

Part of that scaling up, of course, would involve the proposed move to a new state-of-the-art, 300-seat theater on the Coconut Grove Playhouse property, in partnership with Miami-Dade County and Florida International University.

“I know how hard Joe worked to find the company a larger space to serve a larger audience, to make sure GableStage is strong and robust,” Newport says. “I’m onboard with the company growing and evolving in all ways, including now. If all the forces allow GableStage to take over that historic space, it would be remarkable.”

Even so, she appreciates the intimacy of the company’s current space.

“I’m amazed and full of gratitude for the partnership with the Biltmore. Every theater space is a character in the stories being told. The current space provides a unique and awesome way to engage with the story in front of you and with your fellow community members,” she says.

Michael Spring, director of Miami-Dade’s Department of Cultural Affairs (which helps support Artburst Miami), worked alongside Adler to create a new version of the Coconut Grove Playhouse with GableStage as its resident company. Over Zoom, he spoke with Newport about GableStage and theater here, and he thinks she’s the right person to lead the theater toward a more expansive future.

“I found her to be incredibly energetic and determined. I was impressed with how charismatic she is,” Spring says. “She’ll be running a theater that is identified with Joe and his larger-than-life personality. But as she takes it in new directions, she’ll put her imprint on it. There will be edginess but also things with more access to the general public. She has a strong commitment to arts education and forming the audiences of the future.

“GableStage will go on to do great things, I’m convinced.”

For more information on the Coral Gables theater, visit GableStage.org or call 305-445-1119.

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‘Pass the Mic’ shares Miami residents’ stories

Renter rights activist Mychelle Bentley is featured in Vanessa Charlot’s documentary, “Final Notice,” about the eviction crises during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo courtesy of Oolite Arts)

A search for makeup trends on YouTube led one South Florida businesswoman on a quest to quietly transform her neighborhood.

Which, in turn, led her to lend her voice to “Pass the Mic: We Will Tell Our Stories,” a virtual screening event presented by Oolite Arts and the Community Justice Project.

The collaborative effort, set to air at 7 p.m. March 31, aimed for “community-centered storytelling,” pairing three filmmakers with Miami residents affected by critical everyday issues – many of which have worsened since the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic.

“These documentaries are being told by people who live these issues,” said Nadege Green, director of community research and storytelling for the Community Justice Project, which is composed of lawyers who advocate for low-income communities of color. “This isn’t something that they learned secondhand … or read in a book or studied. This is real life for them. They are on the front lines, and they should be the ones to tell their story.”

Among them is Sherina Jones, an aesthetician who owns Miramar-based Snob Beauty Box and who created Village Free(dge), a neighborhood food program. She initially began helping to feed residents after stumbling onto a YouTube video on community refrigerators.

She purchased a refrigerator for the cause, stocked it with food, then reached out to The Roots Collective, a group dedicated to the economic growth and self-sufficiency of Black and Brown communities. Their partnership has evolved into a food bank and pantry in Liberty City.

Though she launched the program amid a pandemic, Jones notes that the obstacles residents face are nothing new.

“Even before COVID, [food insecurity] was always an issue,” Jones said. “Most of [our participants] don’t have transportation. It’s hard to get to some grocery stores and shop in bulk. So that’s what creates food deserts, and that’s where we place the community refrigerators.”

Though helping to feed the community is its main initiative, it’s not the sole focus of Village Free(dge). The organization also supports participants by seeking overall solutions to systemic problems. Ultimately, the goal is for participants to choose a path of self-sufficiency.

“Some are looking for work,” Jones said. “Some need a second chance or need therapy or counseling. So there are so many things to deal with outside of food, and once they have food out of the way, then they can work on the next level of getting back into life.”

Filmmaker Alicia G. Edwards, whose documentary focused on Village Free(dge), said she gained new insights while working on the film.

“I was really surprised by how many people in that line every morning were working, ” she said. “I also think the really cool thing about the Village Free(dge) is that so many of the people who use the pantry also volunteer there.”

Edwards was particularly taken by Jones’ public service.

“This is a woman who gets up at 6 o’clock every morning,” Edwards said. “She doesn’t have to do it, but it’s of her own volition, and I think that’s really admirable.”

Dennis Scholl, president and CEO of Oolite Arts, points to the documentaries as a great example of a positive partnership between communities and artists. The three films average about 10 minutes each.

“Artists have an important role to play in communities and can lead the way in bringing critical issues to light through their work,” he said. “Presenting issues to audiences through art – whether it’s a painting, a poem or a documentary – can make people think differently and cause them to be more receptive to other people’s lived experiences and viewpoints.

“That’s important,” he added. “Especially when you’re talking about such important issues like food insecurity and affordable housing, which need to be addressed in Miami.”

The Community Justice Project’s Green said the inclusion of authentic voices was an essential element of the films. To gain a proper perspective from the outset, Green challenged the notion of who was considered knowledgeable about community-based issues.

“I think we need to talk about who are the experts,” she said. “Those in academia and politicians are typically far removed from the issues that they [specialize in] and we wanted to upend that. We wanted to look at that differently.”

Since voices from the community were paramount to the project, the filmmakers – which also included Vanessa Charlot and Fxrbes – reached out to work directly with those affected by the pandemic.

In addition to Jones, their films feature Danny Agnew of the Roots Collective and Village Free(dge), tenants’ rights organizer Mychelle Bentley, and Lizabeth Torres of incarcerated  rights group, Beyond the Bars.

Green hopes these types of projects will continue, allowing residents to be adequately heard and be the focal point of change.

“[Some] call these communities voiceless,” she said. “If we’re going to be honest about it, it’s not that they’re voiceless, it’s that they’re unheard. But the onus is on you to hear them.”

 

WHAT: “Pass the Mic: We Will Tell Our Stories,” presented by Oolite Arts and Community Justice Project

WHEN: 7 p.m. March 31

WHERE: Virtual screening, followed by a discussion moderated by Nadege Green, the Community Justice Project’s director of community research and storytelling 

COST: Admission is free but requires RSVP

INFORMATION:  Oolitearts.org/pass-the-mic

 

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Review: ‘Art Heist’ is a fun idea but far less dramatic than the real-life crime

Actors play suspects and investigators in “Art Heist Experience” at Miami’s Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. (Photo courtesy of Justin Namon/ra-haus)

True crime stories fascinate us. The proof lies in countless movies, books, TV shows, podcasts, plays and even operas built around the minor-to-horrific misdeeds of real-life crooks.

Creator-producer Justin Sudds and writer-directors TJ Dawe and Ming Hudson offer up another example of the genre in “Art Heist Experience,” an interactive outdoor show with separate productions now playing at Miami’s Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts and Fort Lauderdale’s Broward Center for the Performing Arts.

“Art Heist” is inspired by the March 18, 1990, theft of art worth $500 million from Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Two men posing as police officers appeared at the museum in the early morning hours and told security guard Rick Abath they were there to investigate a disturbance. Abath let them in, and after fellow guard Randy Hestand was summoned back from his rounds to the security desk, the “cops” handcuffed and duct-taped both guards. The two were taken to the basement, where they remained cuffed throughout the robbery. The crime took 81 minutes. The reward for the safe return of the art has since grown to $10 million, but nothing has been recovered. Netflix is scheduled to release a four-part documentary series about the crime titled, “This Is a Robbery: The World’s Biggest Art Heist,” on April 7.

At this point, you may be wondering how Sudds, Dawe and Hudson made interactive theater out of a crime that has remained unsolved for 31 years – and how the experience plays out in a place as different as South Florida is from Boston. The short answer from experiencing the show at the Arsht on St. Patrick’s Day: “Art Heist Experience” is far less dramatic than the crime itself.

The conceit is that members of the audience – masked and socially distanced as they walk from location to location – are recruits brought on to help solve the case. Ticket-holders use their phones to scan a digital dossier giving basic details about the crime and each of the four suspects they’ll encounter – security guard Abath (Natalie Cabo), career criminal David Turner (Ryan Crout), con man Brian McDevitt (Michael Ferreiro) and art thief Myles Connor Jr. (Blondean Young) – as well as three specific clues per suspect.

Ryan Gigliotti as security expert Anthony Amore and Melissa Almaguer as FBI agent Bob Wittman lead each group from suspect to suspect, and at every stop the possibly guilty assure us of their innocence, then respond to our questions with annoyance, charm or just a hint of menace. There are no choir boys in this bunch.

After the final suspect encounter, you review clues with the actor playing Harold Smith (Eric Pinder), an eyepatch-wearing art recovery expert for Lloyd’s of London who has (he confides) been dead since 2005. Then you vote on whodunit, not that the vote proves anything, and that’s that.

Sounds like fun, especially since live theater experiences are in such short supply these days, right? But “Art Heist” also has several factors working against it.

You need to be mobile and have some stamina, no matter the temperature. At the Arsht, for instance, you wind up walking the perimeter of the Ziff Ballet Opera House and Knight Concert Hall campus, some stairs included, and you remain standing for almost all of the show’s 90-minute run time. You can bring water, and you should, since no drinks are sold.

Having information about the crime and suspects on your phone is handy, but if you’re trying to absorb it as you go, you’ll find your gaze on the phone as you click through explanations and clues, rather than being fully engaged with the actors.

Although all the characters are men, some of the actors aren’t, so a disconnect can happen as you watch a woman play a real-life male suspect whose photo is on your phone. Each actor is steeped in the background of his or her character, but some are better improvisers than others, and staying in character on the fly as you’re being bombarded with questions is a necessity.

All of the actors wear microphones, which helps, but masked theatergoers firing questions are sometimes hard to hear. The Arsht’s location — bisected by busy Biscayne Boulevard and so near the traffic roar of Interstate 395 (with planes from Miami International Airport passing overhead) — doesn’t enhance the auditory part of the experience.

If you’re a true crime fan, miss theater, and have a spirit for adventure, “Art Heist Experience” may be for you. But you’ll likely enjoy it more if you do three things: Read about the crime before you go (the facts are easy to find online); bring a bottle of water; and wear your most comfortable walking shoes.

“Art Heist Experience” is playing at the Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, from March 20-21 and March 25-28; another production of the show plays at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave., Fort Lauderdale, from March 20-21, March 23-28 and March 30-April 4; performances begin every half-hour on a varying schedule, so check websites for exact times; tickets start at $43 and $48 at the Arsht Center and $39.50-$44.50 at the Broward Center; visit arshtcenter.org or call 305-949-6722 for Miami tickets; visit browardcenter.org or call 954-462-0222 for Fort Lauderdale tickets.

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38th annual Miami Film Festival goes hybrid, with in-person and virtual screenings

Shein Mompremier plays Ludi in Edson Jean’s film of the same name, which is set to open the Miami Film Festival on March 5. (Photo courtesy of Bantufy Films)

In March 2020, the pandemic forced the Miami Film Festival to close with just four days left in its run. Now, a year later, the festival is going forward with a hybrid format: in-person screenings at one cinema (instead of its typical multiple venues) and virtual screenings to enjoy from home.

“Most of the films that will be live will also be virtual,” says Lauren Cohen, the festival’s associate director of programming. “We got over 1,000 submissions this year, and we have over 100 films from 40 countries.”

The festival opens on March 5 with an in-theater, world-premiere screening of Miami-based filmmaker Edson Jean’s “Ludi,” based on his Haitian mother’s job as a home health aide for Miami seniors and her experience trying to make her way in America. A personal story with a screenplay by Jean and co-writer Joshua Jean-Baptiste, “Ludi” will also be available to watch virtually.

The film will compete for both the $40,000 Knight Made in MIA Feature Film Award supported by the John S. & James L. Knight Foundation, and the $10,000 Jordan Ressler First Feature Award. Jean received $50,000 from Oolite Arts to create his film.

In fact, “Ludi” is the first film from Oolite Arts’ Cinematic Arts Residency program, which began in 2019. It is also Jean’s first feature film. His most recent work was an online streaming dramedy titled, “Grown,” and he wrote, directed and starred in “The Adventures of Edson Jean,” a 20-minute short film made in 2013 and aired on HBO.

Creating “Ludi” as part of the Oolite Art’s program was a learning experience in so many ways, Jean says.

“It taught me that there isn’t just one way to make a film,” he says. “It was really important for me to not try to make a film that looked like it had a half a million-dollar budget when it had $50,000.”

Jean says he learned to “lean into the fact” that he was working within a smaller budget. “Then, by proxy, you can get something that feels like a complete story and a piece of art,” he says.

The Cinematic Arts Residency program is intended to help fast-forward the careers of Miami filmmakers and to bring Miami stories to the big screen.

“Oolite is a conduit for that,” Jean says. “There are some exciting filmmakers in Miami, and Oolite is literally creating this channel that’s not dependent on anything like an incentive from the city to build Miami’s film identity.”

Jean never expected “Ludi” to be selected to kick off the 38th edition of the festival. But like so many things, COVID-19 changed the course of the movie’s trajectory.

“The idea from the beginning was to use the film as a gateway to galvanize the community,” Jean says, with the idea of presenting it in community centers and churches – and no goal of running it in big-box movie theaters or having it picked up by a large distribution house.

Once in-person gatherings return, he hopes to begin the movie’s Florida tour of eight cities, from Miami-Dade to Orange counties.

Jean says the film was finished before COVID-19 hit, so he was able to take his time and refocus. Then came the invitation from the Miami Film Festival: “Just for the film to appear at the festival was special on its own.”

To have it chosen as the festival opener was an extra honor.

“Edson’s film was one of the most exciting things to happen,” Cohen says. “When we saw the lineup taking shape, and when we were programming for the opening, we found this incredible film.”

Organizers also discovered another film that came out of Oolite Arts’ Cinematic Arts Residency: a documentary by Jayme Kaye Gershen titled “Birthright,” which follows Miami electro-pop duo Afrobeta as they prepare to perform in Havana. It is scheduled to close the festival on March 14.

“The film is about cultural identity. What does it mean to label yourself someone who is Cuban if your parents are Cuban but you were born in Miami and have never set foot in the country,” Cohen says. “They take this journey as they deal with their parents who left Cuba and are angry at the thought of them going there and them wanting to go to find their ties – their roots.

“It sets the right tone for the closing night.”

Gershen’s film will compete for both the festival’s Documentary Achievement Award and the Knight Made in MIA Feature Film Award.

“Made-in-Miami films are so important to us,” Cohen says. “And to be able to bookend the festival with two MIA films with these incredible local talents … they are both small films, but ones that pack such an incredible punch.”

 

WHAT: Miami Film Festival, presented by Miami Dade College

WHEN: March 5-14

WHERE:

In-person: Screenings will take place at Silverspot Cinema, 300 SE Third St., Miami, with safety protocols including mandated mask-wearing, socially distanced seating, and theaters at half-capacity.

Virtual: Viewers will receive an email from noreply@eventive.org with more information.

COST: The in-theater experience costs $13 for general admission, $10 for Film Society members, $12 for age 65 and older, and $10 for students and military veterans. Virtual screenings are $13 for general admission.

INFORMATION: miamifilmfestival.eventive.org/welcome

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit source of theater, dance, visual arts, music and performing arts news. Sign up for our newsletter and never miss a story.

 

Zoetic Stage turns to think-fast improv as theater starts to regroup

Jeni Hacker and Elena María García give orders and some attitude to Fergie L. Philippe in “Zoetic Schmoetic” at Miami’s Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. (Photo courtesy of Eyeworks Production)

While a widespread return to indoor theater won’t happen yet, some companies and venues have figured out creative ways to come back sooner.

Hence the presence of the fast-paced improv show, “Zoetic Schmoetic,” on the outdoor Thomson Plaza at Miami’s Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts over the weekend.

Zoetic Stage, based in the Arsht’s Carnival Studio Theater since it launched in late 2010, has built its reputation on impeccably intimate productions of Stephen Sondheim musicals, challenging dramatic fare such as “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” and world premieres by founder-playwrights Michael McKeever and Christopher Demos-Brown.

But its return to monthly performances after a year of pandemic isolation is strictly for some much-needed laughs.

Through several weeks of rehearsals and theater games, artistic director Stuart Meltzer and improv coordinator/assistant director Elena María García have fashioned a company of actors better known for traditional stage work into a quick-thinking, creatively adept, physically expressive improv troupe.

García along with Clay Cartland, Jeni Hacker, Daryl Patrice, Fergie L. Philippe and Gabriell Salgado each have multiple inspired moments in performance. Yet those moments at the upcoming shows in late March and April are likely to be different from the ones that happened during the “Zoetic Schmoetic” debut on Feb. 27, because that’s the nature of improv: No two shows are alike.

The playing area is on the wide landing and stairs situated between Books & Books and the Carnival Studio Theater. Meltzer sits off to one side, manning a bell that indicates a key moment in a game (when the prevailing emotion changes, for instance) or when the game itself is over.

The audience, seated at distanced tables dotted around the plaza, is sometimes prompted to offer suggestions of words or topics, but mostly those watching just applaud or laugh. A lot.

The scenes/games, which make up a 90-minute show, have names such as: Symphony, Bell, Interrogation, Things I Forgot on the Bus, Professor Know-It-All.  The actors have to listen to each other, switch course instantly, weave wildly disparate elements and ideas into something comedically cohesive. If you could convert all that adrenaline into rocket fuel, it would probably be enough to power the next SpaceX launch.

Speaking of which: A car pool game featured Salgado, Hacker, Patrice and Cartland as astronauts on their way to a moon launch, with human sound effects by Philippe.

Salgado’s predominant mood was fear. When Hacker got in the “car” (four chairs, really), the mood instantly shifted to excitement. Then Patrice climbed in the back, bringing with her depression. Finally, a ticklish Cartland got in, causing everyone to giggle and squirm. After that, as each person exited, the mood changed again until Salgado was left all alone with his fear. The improvised dialogue was all space-related, mood-appropriate and funny.

Salgado made periodic appearances as a rapper named Skittles, a guy forced to incorporate audience-suggested words like “spatula” into his rhymes. García and Philippe met at a dog park, summoning their pooches until it became clear that maybe García didn’t actually own a dog. In another scene, Cartland transformed into the previously unknown Miami superhero, Café con Leche Man, to combat the latest national emergency: All the dresses on the planet have disappeared. Goofy? You bet. Hilarious? Heck yes.

Hacker did double duty hopping back and forth in side-by-side restaurant scenes, first sitting opposite García in a fancy French place where the two ex-BFFs tried to mend fences, then hopping over to a literal blind date with Cartland at an eatery where dog food was on the menu.

Cartland played a suspect not privy to the details of a crime (art heist), method (dental floss) and location (Disney World) — but forced to guess all three from clues provided by interrogators Hacker and García. With Patrice, the women played Professor Know-It-All, each taking turns contributing a single word to a not-so-funny, faux NPR-style interview that went on too long.

Then the cast switched it up to put COVID-related lyrics to well-known songs.  The performers are all fine singers – Hacker, Cartland and Philippe (who was in “Hamilton” on Broadway) especially so – and you can’t help wishing you could watch them do a full evening of musical improv. And bravo to Matt Corey for his spot-on sound design.

Peter Pan’s Lost Boys and Wendy made an appearance. Cartland and Salgado played a pair of bartenders forced to do ever-more-brief versions of the same improvised scene. Cartland, Salgado and Philippe played members of a middle-school performance art troupe doing a piece about koalas. Then the Simpsons went to family counseling.

Zoetic will doubtless do some tinkering to make “Zoetic Schmoetic” even better before its next back-to-back performances on March 27.

Environmental noises like the sounds of motorcycles revving and roaring along Biscayne Boulevard can’t be eliminated, of course, but tweaks to the sound system to eliminate sporadic garbling or feedback can be made. Masking the actors is safe, and the performers use microphones, but the KN95 facial coverings cover the lower half of their faces, taking away one of the most expressive tools in an actor’s arsenal.

Safety is clearly paramount as performers and audiences gather at the Arsht again. Outside the main box-office area at the Ziff Ballet Opera House, theatergoers have their virtual tickets scanned, get a temperature check, take a quick COVID survey (which can also be done in advance), pass through security, then get shown to their tables, where they can order drinks and food from a menu scanned via their phones. Physically, human interaction is minimized.

But the priceless alchemy of performers giving their all to a delighted, responsive audience is as potent as ever. Cartland has a tradition of doing a morning-after post on his Facebook page after his (usually) wildly successful opening nights, writing simply: “They didn’t boo.”

His post after the “Zoetic Schmoetic” opening added a few words that somehow embodied grief and relief, actor and audience back where they belong: “After over one year … they didn’t boo.”

 

WHAT: “Zoetic Schmoetic,” an improv comedy show produced by Zoetic Stage

WHEN: 5 and 9 p.m. March 27 and April 24

WHERE: Thomson Plaza for the Arts at Miami’s Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami

 COST: $15

INFORMATION: 305-949-6722; arshtcenter.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit source of theater, dance, visual arts, music and performing arts news. Sign up for our newsletter and never miss a story.