Life Stories

In preparation for our final performance on April 25-26th, Lifestories students will be working with Victor Maog, a professional director.  Victor will join us for four sessions (totalling 24 hours!) to refine, tighten and theatricalize the 5 short plays which are a part of AMERICANA, our spring show.  Basically to help bring our work to the next level. 

Victor is a New York City-based stage director and educator considered "one of the nation's leading young Asian-American directors" (Denver Post).  He creates plays and musicals that inspire dialogue, push theatricality, and reach out to both mainstream and marginalized audiences.  A perfect match for the Lifestories crew. 


Check out pictures of Victor working with the talented ensemble.  As you can see, the chemistry was instantaneous.  Thank you Victor for helping us make AMERICANA a truly amazing show!

Victor working with the cast of Natalia Naman's AMERICAN DREAM REHAB.

Victor working with the cast of Jon Kern's HOW TO LEARN TO SING.

Victor helps theatricalize Josh Koenigsberg's LOCKED UP.

Preparing for the curtain call with the full cast.

Life Stories was invited to perform at the 10th Annual Rebel Verses Festival on March 25th and 27th. 

REBEL VERSES is the first youth-based theater festival of its kind. The festival provides a unique opportunity for young artists to write, act, direct and produce theatrical work. Culminating in a two-week run that showcases various youth organizations, young and emerging artists, the repertory format of the festival offers a rare chance for fellow artists to view each others performance and network with their peers.

Warming up before the show with casts from MCC and Roundabout.

Life Stories performed an improvisation piece based on the Harold, pioneered by the Upright Citizen's Brigade.  While we had a structure we had no idea what the content of the piece would be from night to night.  The first performance our inspiration word was "CUPCAKES."  Amongst the brilliant ideas explored by the ensemble, a couple lines stand out:

"It is: too expensive in Manhattan."

"I am Vanilla"

The second performance our inspiration word was "DOG." Not only did this performance climax in our brilliant students getting physical onstage as dogs, but featured such stand-out ideas:

"the dog ate my homework,"

 "i was bitten by a dog, and he looked like a wolf, man."

Life Stories kicked some major booty at the show, leaving the audience in stitches of laughter.

 

GO LIFE STORIES GO LIFE STORIES GO!

Don't miss our Spring show April 25th & 26th


 

Playwrights In Residence: Session 1

13 Mar 2010, 7:53 PM by Juliagrob, Life Stories

Our first session was a blast, kicking off what is sure to be an exciting collaboration. 

1st order of business: Casts Announced!

After much anticipation we announced the five casts for the 2010 Playwrights in Residence Program.  Drum roll please...

Jon Kern will have the daunting cast of writing for 4 talented Life Stories members: Brittany Guisintanner (12th grade), Diogenes Martinez (11th grade, Heritage HS), Josh Ramos (12th grade, City As), and Isaiah Alicea (10th grade)

Josh Koenigsberg will write for the talented Anthony Naranjo (11th grade, Beacon HS), Petra Wilmer (9th grade), Chris Patterson (12th grade, East Side Community HS)

Dominique Morisseau will write for female powerhouse cast: Shekeyva Edwards (11th grade), Juanise Allen (11th grade, New Design HS), Cyndia LaFontant (12th grade, New Design HS).

Natalia Naman will write for the delightful Maxine Batchler (10th grade, New Design HS), Taylor Morrison (New Design HS), and Devante Williams (12th grade).

Harrison Rivers will write for the powerful Sydney White (10th grade, New Design HS), Eric McKenzie (12th grade, Boys and Girls HS), Lerone Savage (12th grade).

2nd order of business: Getting To Know You

After a brief intro, the teams set off to work quickly, forming a natural rapport in every case.  Check out pictures of this exciting collaboration.  Makes you wanna be in Life Stories, huh?

Josh K. and his cast are bonding already.

Jon and Brittany demonstrate the power of collaboration.

Natalia learns from her cast.

Dominique proposes an idea to her lovely actresses.

Harrison and his cast kick it off with some hard work.

I cannot wait to read the plays!  I think we're off to a great start, don't you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We're pleased to introduce you to the 2010 Life Stories Youth Ensemble Playwrights In Residence!  Meet our very cool emerging playwrights.  Remember their names, you will soon see them in lights!

Meet Jon Kern

Jon Kern has worked with 2g, bluebox productions, Despina & Co., The Magnet Theater, and the Nature Theater of Oklahoma, and his writing has been presented or workshopped at Ensemble Studio Theater, New Georges, The Flea Theater, The Brick Theater, and Het Rozentheater in Amsterdam. He is a member of EST/Youngblood, The Old Vic New Voices Network, and the Ma-Yi Writers Lab. He is a graduate of the University of Chicago and Columbia University’s School of the Arts. He was awarded a 2010-2011 Van Lier Fellowship in Playwriting from New Dramatists.

 

Meet Josh Koenigsberg

 

Josh Koenigsberg’s work has been produced/developed at The Public Theater, The Atlantic Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, 2econd Stage, Ars Nova, Naked Angels, The Old Vic, Center Stage, Collective:Unconscious and the 2009 Broadway Pink Campaign at the American Airlines Theater where he wrote the material for host Rachel Dratch. He is a founding ensemble member of At Play, the resident company for the 24-Hour Plays Off-Broadway, as well as a member of the Old Vic New Voices Network and The Dramatist's Guild. His most recent play, Al's Business Cards had an extended run at Theatre Row, was a New York Times “Critic’s Pick”, and named one of the 10 Best Off-Off Broadway Plays of 2009 by Nytheatre.com. It’s published in Plays and Playwrights 2010 edited by Martin Denton. He is currently one of the writers-in-residence in The Living Newspaper – an updated version of the classic project that dramatizes real-life news stories – as well as one of the staff writers for “Naked Radio” a new radio show produced by Naked Angels Theater Company. M.F.A. in Playwriting from Columbia University and a B.A. in Philosophy and the Arts from Bard College.
 
Meet Dominique Morisseau
 
Dominique Morisseau is a playwright, actress, and arts advocate for social justice. Her list of plays includes Black at Michigan (Cherry Lane Studio), Retrospect For Life (Hip Hop Theatre Festival), and Follow Me To Nellie’s (the Standard). She is the recipient of two NAACP Image Awards, a Jane Chambers Award Honor, a Wendy Wasserstein nomination, and a scholarship to the Centrum Writer’s Conference (Port Washington), and the Black Women Playwrights Conference (Chicago).
 

Meet Natalia Naman

 

 

Natalia Naman was born in New York, raised largely in Georgia, and currently resides in Alphabet City.  Her plays include THE OLD SHIP OF ZION (The Lark, Princeton University), DROUGHT (NYU Tisch), and CROSSING OVER (EST, Manhattan Theatre Source). Her writing has been presented at NYU’s Festival of New Works and the Lark Play Development Center’s Playwrights’ Week. She is a River Crossing Rivers EST Playwright this year. Natalia is a second year MFA candidate in Dramatic Writing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

 

Meet Harrison Rivers


Harrison is no stranger to Life Stories and Urban Arts Partnership.  He received is Broadway premier as an emerging writer for the 2009 24 Hour Plays on Broadway.  He was the writing coach for New Design's 24 Hour Plays in the school program coaching current Life Stories members Maxine Batchler and Sydney White, and Life Stories Alum, Maynor Alas ('09).
Additionally, Harrison is a 2010-11 Van Lier Fellow with New Dramatists and a 2009-10 New York Theatre Workshop Emerging Artist of Color Fellow. His play WHEN LAST WE FLEW was recently selected for development as part of the 2010 Sundance Theater Lab at Governors Island. He currently serves as the Artistic Director of at play, an Exchange affiliated ensemble and the official off-Broadway company of the 24 Hour Plays-www.atplayproductions.com. He is also a member of the Old Vic New Voices Network, the Lincoln Center Director’s Lab and The Movement Theater Company.  Harrison holds degrees in American Studies and Dance & Drama from Kenyon College and an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University.

Life Stories is proud to announce our 2010 Playwrights In Residence Program.  Five emerging NYC playwrights will be selected to take on the task of writing 5 original one act plays in collaboration with our Life Stories Students.

Heres how it works: 

Each student will create a character based on someone they know. 

They will create a detailed character outline and "I want" monologue to give to their writers.

Writers will each receive a pre-determined cast. 

In groups students will share their characters and create original monologues inspired by their writers, who will provide both a secret and detailed memory for the actor's characters. 

Over the course of 3 sessions, playwrights will bring in drafts to further refine and develop a script in collaboration with their actors. 

5 weeks later, these 5 original plays will premier at the Acorn Theater on April 25th.

Stay tuned for updates!

 

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