24 Hour Plays in the Schools - Intersession 2010 - Day 3

10 Feb 2010, 3:15 PM by Juliagrob, Urban Arts Master Classes

Day 3 :: February 4th

Its the final day of rehearsal before the big show at 2pm.  That means there are only 4 hours of rehearsal till our tech run through at 2pm!  Avi and I have spent the last 2 days converting room 416 into a black box theater, complete with lights donated from ABT to a school downstairs.  Seems like everything is working in our favor to make this culminating event a success!  Check out the photos to watch the casts prepare for show time.
 

Its rehearsal time for Michael Kenneth Williams and the cast of "She Can't Eat Cheese if She is Lactose Intolerant," written by Maynor Alas. 

Gabby Hoffman shows the cast of Sydney White's "Flight to the Future" how its done.  
 

Rosie Perez and the cast of Maxine Batchler's "The Interview" take advantage of their last hour of rehearsal in Black Box 416, our brand new black box theater!

Taylor Morrison, our wonderful tech student, prepares the lights before the big show.

Ghetto Talks: First In-school Screening!

09 Feb 2010, 10:49 PM by Elizabeth Rodd, Urban Arts MediaLab

By Omar Cyrille, Assistant Cinematographer, Ghetto Talks II

Ghetto Talks, an original documentary by Advanced Media Lab students at Urban Arts Partnership, had its first in-school screening at Kurt Hahn High School in Brooklyn tonight.  Current students, teachers and parents attended the screening.  Personally, I was extremely nervous to present our project.  As the lights went down the audience became very attentive.  I expected some students to talk and joke around with the content of the film, but surprisingly they were on the edge of their seats.  Parents were nodding in agreement with the message of our film.

I’ve seen Ghetto Talks around six times and it still puts a smile on my face when I see the work our student crew put together.  Everyone put in countless hours over a three-month period to make this 16-minute documentary.  When the credits rolled, the lights turned on and I heard the massive claps from pleased peers and their parents, all I could do was think about how the hard work and long sessions had been worth it.

We also used the Kurt Hahn screening as an opportunity to get some b-roll and verité footage with Principal Matt Brown, who will be the subject of the next response piece in our Ghetto Talks II production.  I was assistant cinematographer tonight, so I captured footage of the Q&A while student presenters SoSo Douglas and Joshua Davis fielded questions and comments from the audience.

I was really surprised at their reactions. At first nobody was saying anything.  A teacher from Kurt Hahn opened the floor with his very entertaining comment.  He opened the door for parents to walk through and throw their insight in.  It reminded me of a classroom.  People agreed and disagreed respectfully.  The questions and answers could have gone on all night.  

I really appreciated when a parent explained the word ghetto as a mindset because I feel the same way.  She said that people have it set in their minds that they need to act and be a certain way.  Another woman said that some people aren’t poor but they don’t want to move out of the ghetto because they feel they need to be in the ghetto to feel like themselves.  They’re trapped in their own minds.

Our first screening left our audience with questions and awareness on the word ghetto.  I’m sure that people didn’t realize how much the word is used.  It was a great event.  Be sure to check back on our blog to find out when the next screening is!

24 Hour Plays in the Schools - Intersession 2010 - Day 2

08 Feb 2010, 2:40 PM by Juliagrob, Urban Arts Master Classes

24 Hour Plays in the Schools - Intersession 2010 - Day 1

08 Feb 2010, 2:18 PM by Juliagrob, Urban Arts Master Classes

24 Hour Plays in the Schools - Intersession 2010 NDHS

08 Feb 2010, 1:44 PM by Juliagrob, Urban Arts Master Classes

The 24 Hour Plays at New Design High School in a Nutshell

13 dedicated students hone acting and writing skills through a series of rigorous workshops where they conceive of, write, rehearse and perform 3 original works in the span of 24 hours. 

This is our second year working during Intersession at NDHS and this year our program runs over the course of three days.  Part-master class, part-production workshop, part-zanny ass-kicking adrenaline high, the 24 Hour Plays in the Schools is an experience not to be forgotten. 

Joining forces for the 2nd year in a row, New Design English teacher Avi Kline and I are working with Sydney White and Maxine Batchler, 2 sophomore Life Stories writers, Maynor Alas, Life Stories alumni 2009, and nine New Design seniors with very little acting experience.  Playwright Harrison Rivers, who received his Broadway debut at the 2009 24 Hour plays on Broadway, joins us as playwright in residence.  Our guest directors and master artists are Rosie Perez, Michael Kenneth Williams, and Gabby Hoffman, all of whom have acted in the 24 Hour Plays on Broadway!

No one really knows what they are getting into.  But over the course of the next 3 days, they will be transformed from ordinary HS students,  into seasoned actors and writers, and complete their first 24 Hour Plays...all in the span of 24 hours!  Lets go!!