Matrix in the community

Being involved and present in our community is part of the mission at Matrix Theatre Company. We recently came out to support our neighborhood and city at two fantastic events.

The first was the Martin Luther King Jr. Rally and March on Jan 18, we brought out three of our Giant Hero Puppets to help with the march. Dr. King was leading the charge with Ella Baker and Cesar Chavez not far behind. The three heroes marched along hundreds of Detroiters who stood in solidarity for jobs, peace and justice. Matrix offers an emphatic “Thank you” to Central United Methodist Church, all of the speakers and everyone who came to support and remember King’s legacy. It is an honor for Matrix to be involved in this annual tradition.

The second event was the Southwest Detroit Multicultural Multigenerational Celebration. The Michigan Roundtable for Diversity and Inclusion has been working with the people of Southwest Detroit to bring about an ever stronger sense of community among the diverse cultures and generations.

Individuals representing the African American, Arab American, Caucasian, Hispanic and Native American were present to both listen and share.

Matrix Theatre Company presented a portion of Vanished, the new original work that will debut March 12, 2010, at the celebration. Directed by Laura Perez, the cast performed two scenes from the play that asks tough questions about immigration policy and how one local family faces the biggest struggle of their lives because of it.

The audience enjoyed different foods from the many cultures present and saw various other performances. “The goal of striving for cultural understanding is to build bridges across boundaries of race, culture, and geography and develop youth and adult leaders able to promote Southwest Detroit as a community for all.”

Model D article about theatre and hard times

Despite the state of the economy, Matrix Theatre Company and other Detroit theaters are adapting to the times and continuing the important mission of keeping live theatre a part of the community.

To see how Matrix and others are surviving the times, check out the article published this week on Model D.

MODEL D

Winter class schedule

PERFORMANCE AND PLAYWRITING:

Now PLAYing
Ages 5-7
Saturdays, 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Matrix Theatre Company
Begins Jan 23, 2010
In this introduction to being on stage, Matrix’s youngest actors will learn the basics of movement, stage voice, and characterization as they prepare a call-and-response performance for March 22’s World Water Day event.

Living on Stage
Ages 8-11
Tues/Thurs, 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Roberto Clemente Recreation Center
Begins Jan 26, 2010
Older children taking this class will have the opportunity to learn the beginning elements of playwriting. Through explorations of character, plot, setting, and theme, these young writers will adapt a story about water consciousness that will be performed on March 22 at the World Water Day event.

Playwriting Is…
Ages 11-14
Tues/Thurs, 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.

Begins Jan 26, 2010
Students in this class will begin to think about playwriting as a springboard to social change. Building on their playwriting experience from the last semester, these students will script an original piece about hidden waters of Detroit, and what water justice means to not only the animals that inhabit Detroit waters, but also to city residents as well. Their play will be performed at the World Water Day event on March 22.

PUPPETRY:

Water Stories Puppets
Ages 5-7
Saturdays, 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.n.
Matrix Theatre Company Studio
Begins Jan 23, 2010
Where is water from? Where does it go? What happens if we don’t take care of it? Our youngest puppeteers will begin to discover the answers to those questions as they read storybooks about water, and make puppets of the fish, turtles, and other creatures that live in water, as well as people puppets who will tell water stories at the World Water Day event on March 22.

Recycled Puppets

Ages 8-11
Saturday, 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Matrix Theatre Company Studio
Begins Jan 23, 2010
Puppet-makers in this class will be using Eco-Fi fabrics and recycled materials to create bottle, glove, rod, sock, and marionette puppets, while also learning about the value of re-using what we have, and the impact bottled water has on our ecosystem.

Spirit of the Water Masks
Ages 11-14
Wednesdays, 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Matrix Theatre Company Studio
Begins Jan 25, 2010
Young teens will tell their own personal stories connected with Michigan and Detroit waters (rivers, lakes, marshes, beaches) to create masks that embody their own connection to the eco-life around them.

Two ‘Vanished’ sneak peek events

Wednesday, Jan. 13 7 p,m.

St. Anne's Church, 1000 St. Anne St.

Part of the Town Hall Meeting for Immigration Reform

Organized by Reform Immigration for America

Saturday, Jan. 23 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.

UAW Hall - Local 22, 4300 Michigan Ave.

Part of the SW Detroit Multicultural MultiGenerational Celebration

Organized by Michigan Roundtable and others

Vanished is almost ready for its debut on March 12, it is the culmination of over a year of work by the talented young playwrights of SW Detroit. This new play will impact our part of the national conversation on immigration and deportation issues as reform debates heat up in Washington.

To begin this process, there will two sneak peek staged readings from the play this month at different community events. The first will be Wednesday, Jan 13 at St. Anne’s Church, 1000 St. Anne St., at 7 p.m. as part of the “50 States for Immigration Reform” Town Hall Meetings coordinated by Reform Immigration for America and the launch of their legislative campaign. This looks to be the strongest upcoming national reform issue, so we encourage you to participate.

The second will be on Saturday, Jan 23 from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. at the SW Detroit Multicultural MultiGenerational Celebration held at the UAW Hall Local 22, 4300 Michigan Ave., as part of a larger community celebration with other performances, activities and wonderful food.

Please come out and invite your friends! Each performance is different, so we hope you can make it to both.

RSVP’s to ksrdjak@matrixtheatre.org are helpful, though not required. Questions and comments are also welcome either by email or phone.

Newest original work, 'Vanished,' premieres March 12

Matrix Theatre Company premieres its newest original production, “Vanished” on March 12, 2010. “Vanished” is a creation of Matrix’s Young Playwrights, who will perform the play in partnership with adult mentors trained in the Matrix way. “Vanished” is the story of a family literally torn apart by immigration laws and enforcement policies.

Set in present-day Southwest Detroit, “Vanished” shows one family’s struggle to live the American Dream, a struggle that is defined differently for parents born abroad and their kids born in the U.S. It deals with the realities of life for immigrant families without preaching or choosing sides.

“Vanished” was created in keeping with Matrix’s mission, to use the transformative power of theatre to change lives, build community and foster social justice. The Young Playwrights who created “Vanished” researched the history of U.S. immigration laws, learned about the recent changes made to enforcement policies, and explored the myths and prejudices at work in the formation of public opinion about immigrants. The result of their efforts is a new work that is designed to open discussion, so that audiences can share their ideas and experiences about an issue that impacts the lives of tens of thousands of Detroiters.

Matrix’s newly configured theatre is an intimate space that ensures that all the action can be seen from every seat. Matrix’s Inclusive Theatre Initiative also insures that “Vanished” is available to all, with parking, seating, and restroom facilities accessible to everyone. Audio description will be available on March 21 and March 26, and assistive listening devices are offered at every show. Guest speakers will host “Talk-backs” at select performances. “Talk-backs” are post-performance events where audiences can meet the creative team behind the play and take part in guided discussions about the play’s themes.

“Vanished” runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays at 4 p.m. from March 12, 2010 through March 28, 2010, at Matrix Theatre Company, 2730 Bagley Street in Detroit.

Tickets are $15 for general admission and $10 for students (with ID) and seniors (65 or older). Children 12 and under pay $8 with an adult. There are no discounts offered for Saturday performances. Special rates are offered for groups of 10 or more.

Tickets can be purchased for the upcoming production by calling Matrix Theatre Company’s box office at 313-967-0599, and more information is available at www.matrixtheatre.org.

Kids in Action

Thursday, December 10th was Matrix’s annual Winter Educational Showcase, which brings together all of the students in our performance, playwriting and puppetry classes to share with family and friends what they’ve learned during the term.

From the Education Manager’s point of view, the day is busy and hectic, but always a real joy. This year was no different. I was really looking forward to seeing the full performances from every class. And to make the event even more special, we were also including a performance by the Introduction to Puppetry class at O.W. Holmes Elementary. Usually our “site-based” classes have performances within their schools; it was so great this time around to have the Holmes kids right in the middle of things and to meet their families too.

The Showcase kicked off with a performance by our “Now PLAYing” group of 5-7 year-olds in Dr. Seuss’ “The Sneetches.” Then Miguel Diaz showed off his masks “Planet Flower” and “Lava Boy” and Marisa DeLaCruz-Martin put on a puppet show for us all.

The 8-11 year olds in “Being on Stage” gave a wonderful performance of “Where the Wild Things Are,” complete with their own homemade monster masks. Our youngest students came back to swim their bottle fish puppets in front of a backdrop they painted themselves, and the Holmes students put on their puppet show, “The Ghosts of O.W. Holmes.”

The final performance of the evening was from the 11-14-year-olds in our “Acting Is …” class, who wrote their own original script based on songs by Kanye West and Michael Jackson. Entitled “The Badder They Are, The Stronger They Rise,” this show featured two dance numbers (and a food fight).

The energy in the room that night was fabulous! All of the performances were fun to watch, and we gave out several Matrix Spirit Awards to some of our most hard-working participants.

Working with all of these students is a complete honor. They blow me away all the time with their talent and creativity, but at Showcase I was mainly impressed by their support of one another. Everyone was truly interested in watching everyone else’s piece; everyone’s reactions and applause were genuine. Afterward, I heard words of congratulations from student to student, and saw hugs and handshakes and high-fives between teachers and family members and kids. The community of creativity is strong at Matrix, and I can’t say thanks enough to all of the teachers and parents, and all of our young performers and puppet-makers and playwrights for being a part of it.

If you missed the showcase, you definitely missed out! Make sure to catch our Spring Showcase on March 22, which is also World Water Day, to see how young Matrix artists use theatre to bring awareness to water issues in Detroit.

Andrea Scobie is the Education Manager at Matrix Theatre Company. She can be reached at ascobie@matrixtheatre.org or at 313-967-0999.

More photos of our Autumn 2009 students.

Prison Creative Arts Project at a 'Talk-back' on Samuel Beckett's 'Happy Days'

The University of Michigan's Prison Creative Arts Project recently came to Matrix Theatre to lead a Matrix "Talk-back" following the November 6, 2009 performance of "Happy Days" by Nobel Prize-winning playwright Samuel Beckett.

Matrix "Talk-backs" give audiences and artists a chance to share their experiences of a performance and discuss the ideas raised in the work. The event was hosted by Shaun Nethercott, Matrix's Executive Director and the play's director. PCAP Founder Buzz Alexander, along with mentor Lizzy Baskerville and former PCAP participants Mary Heinen and Brandon Gatson, all gave moving testimonies about their lives and their work, helping prisoners find their creativity and voices and preserving hope and self under imprisonment. Mary now leads PCAP's youth programs. The "Happy Days" creative team of Shaun and actors Stephanie Nichols and Dan Jaroslaw described how they located these themes in the play and in their performances.

Enjoy.