For Immediate Release
March 27, 2006
Contact Julie McGarvie, Director of Marketing
651-290-8686 x250
OBIE AWARD-WINNING PLAY
Zooman and the Sign
Immediate, Tragic, Inspirational
March 27, 2006; St. Paul, MN: Penumbra Theatre Company, the nation's preeminent African American theatre, proudly announces the opening of Zooman and the Sign, written by Charles Fuller, and directed by Lou Bellamy on April 14, 2006. Amidst the daily news stories of neighborhood violence and gang related deaths, the staging of this drama burns with topical urgency. Zooman and the Sign tells the story of a tragic death of an innocent child transforming a neighborhood. The story centers on the Tate family's struggle to find the killer of their little girl, shot by a wayward bullet from the gun of a gang leader. What used to be a compassionate black community has been rendered powerless by recurring gang violence and police apathy. Rueben Tate's pleas to his neighbors to come forward with information about the killer of his child are met with icy refusals and simple indifference. Racked with a sense of helplessness, he posts a plea for humanity that rouses an emotionally ravaged neighborhood to its feet.
Director Lou Bellamy says, "Our communities have always been challenged by external threats, but over the past several years they have been put under siege from within. Often we dehumanize the threat so that our reactions, our anger, fear, or apathy, seem justified. This play forces us to consider how overwhelming the problem can be, but remains unrelenting in its demand for the recognition of humanity on both sides." This is the second staging of Zooman and the Sign at Penumbra, the first being part of the 1982-83 season. That earlier staging electrified audiences, many of whom were frustrated with the apathy of police and leadership forces as the conditions within our local communities depressed into something unrecognizable, terrifying and very sad. Unfortunately, the issues of neighborhood and gang violence have continued to plague the safety and well being within the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota. Bellamy says, "It is becoming increasingly more common that our youth are acting out with extreme violence while we seem struck dumb by the death of an innocent like 11-year-old Tyesha Edwards, like Michael Zebuhr or astonished by tragedies such as Columbine or Red Lake." Once again, Penumbra is compelled to bring this drama back to the stage to confront issues of racism and poverty, encourage dialogue, and inspire social change.
To facilitate dialogue and close the distance between the audience, artists, and issues presented in the play as well as provide a safe place to express oneself, Penumbra will offer seven Talk Backs, on the evenings of April 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, and 27. Participating panelists include Al McFarlane, publisher of Insight News; John Harrington, Saint Paul Chief of Police; Spike Moss, civil rights activist; Tyrone Terrill, Saint Paul Director of the Human Rights; and Ava Brown, victim of gang violence. Please note that the panelists vary for each Talk Back so check the Penumbra website for details.
For Immediate Release
January 31, 2006
Contact Julie McGarvie, Director of Marketing
651-290-8686 x250
AMERICAN PREMIERE
Sex Diary of an Infidel
Covert Sex Trade, Lascivious Tourist Exchange, Unfolding Secrets
January, 31, 2006; St. Paul, MN: Penumbra Theatre Company, the nation's preeminent African American theatre, proudly announces the opening of Sex Diary of an Infidel written by Michael Gurr, and directed by Ching Valdes-Aran, on February 10, 2006. Penumbra's production hails as the U.S. premiere for this award-winning Australian play.
In this intriguing drama, Gurr elegantly investigates levels of human intimacy by playing on the limits of cultural and carnal boundary. Jean, an Australian journalist, and Martin, a photographer, are traveling to follow a lead into a covert sex trade. The characters, closed and remote as islands themselves, illuminate a lascivious tourist exchange between Australia and the Philippines. Clandestine relationships, parasitic and murky, mirror the greater political arena. "Sex Diary" delves into the space between reality and fantasy, exploding human perceptions of difference. The dramatic unfolding of secrets reveal that no one is what they seem, and in the end, what each has in common is the thing they most fear.
First performed in Melbourne in 1992, Sex Diary of an Infidel has since toured Australia and is the recipient of several awards including the Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Drama, New South Wales Literary Award for Drama, and 8 Green Room Awards, including Best Play. Commenting on the play today, playwright Michael Gurr says, "Time does mysterious things to plays. Now, the sex tour metaphor for Western exploitation seems more to the fore, and transsexual Toni's [character] choices more politically resonant."
Penumbra has always been a pioneer in pushing the envelope both artistically and thematically, garnering a national reputation with audiences and funders as an artistically courageous organization. Penumbra is thrilled to bring this provocative new work to the region, producing it under the finest artistic standards, and as always, from within the African American experience. Penumbra's mission is committed to creating a forum where artists and audiences may share a rigorous engagement with one another as they tackle complicated questions.
Penumbra Theatre founder and artistic director, Lou Bellamy says, "This show brings the conversation to a level frankly not possible anywhere else. This is the very essence of what it means to find human commonality, cultural connection and sustenance outside and in spite of the pillars of oppression."
Gurr has written a powerful play that explores the intrigue, beauty, and darkness of desire, need, and desperation as human connection becomes confused with political game. Valdes-Aran infuses the production with her bold imagery and a charged physicality that creates a palpable, tension filled energy that arouses the senses, arrests the breath, and exposes a complex web of truth and lies. Contemporary, edgy, vibrant and sexy, this production is performed by a dynamic ensemble featuring artists from the Twin Cities, and guest artists from New York. This amazing cast stars: Alexis Camins, Laura Esping, Casey Greig, Phil Kilbourne, Sam L. Landman, and Carolyn Pool. This long awaited mid-west premiere promises to provoke, engage, and inspire with its intriguing and bold look at topics of immediate relevance for today's world.
Contact: Julie McGarvie, Director of Marketing 651-290-8686 x250
"and the IVEY AWARD goes to…"
Salute to Lou Bellamy Featuring Moore By Four
January 4, 2006: St. Paul, MN: Penumbra Theatre Company, the nation's premier African American theatre, proudly announces a salute to Lou Bellamy, Founder and Artistic Director, for his recent Lifetime Achievement Recognition in the first annual Ameriprise Ivey Awards Celebration. The salute will take place on Wednesday, January 11, 2006 from 5:00 - 9:00 PM at the Dakota Jazz Club and Restaurant, Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis. The evening will feature the amazing music of "Moore by Four" - Sanford Moore, Yolande Bruce, Ginger Commodore, Connie Evingson and Dennis Spears, and will be hosted by award-winning vocalist T. Mychael Rambo! The event is proudly sponsored by Lockridge Grindal Nauen P.L.L.P., and serves as a benefit for Penumbra Theatre Company. All proceeds for this event will be eligible for a Bush Foundation Matching Grant. Tickets are on sale now and can be ordered through the Penumbra box office at 651-224-3180 or online at www.penumbratheatre.org
For over 30 years, Lou Bellamy has been active as a director, actor, educator, and leader within the community, creating theatre aimed to illuminate the human condition through the prism of the African American perspective. He graduated with a BA from Minnesota State University, Mankato, and received his MA from the University of Minnesota. He has been a member of the University of Minnesota's faculty for 28 years and is currently appointed to the rank of Associate Professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance. Among the awards he has received for excellence in arts and education are the W. Harry Davis Foundation Award for Leadership in Afro-centric Education, the Links Award in Recognition of Excellence in Black Theatre, and a doctorate from Hamline University. Some of Bellamy's directing credits include: Reflections of Black Nativity, Dinah Was, On the Open Road, King Hedley II, Someplace Soft to Fall, A Lovesong for Miss Lydia, Louie & Ophelia, Riffs, Black Eagles, The Darker Face of the Earth, Blues for an Alabama Sky, Seven Guitars, Big White Fog, Two Trains Running, Portrait of the Artist as a Soul Man Dead, Coming the Hurricane, Three Ways Home, Buffalo Hair, King of Coons, The Mighty Gents, Little Tommy Parker's Celebrated Colored Minstrel Show, The African American Company Presents Richard III, Harvest the Forest, Shorteyes, and Soul Alley. His acting credits include lead roles in Fences, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, The Piano Lesson, Waiting in Vain, and Talking Bones.
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Quick Reference
Event: Salute to Lou Bellamy
Featuring "Moore by Four"
Benefiting Penumbra Theatre Company
Host: T. Mychael Rambo
Featured Artists: Sanford Moore, Yolande Bruce, Ginger Commodore,
Connie Evingson, and Dennis Spears
Sponsor: Lockridge Grindal Nauen, P.L.L.P.
Date: Wednesday, January 11, 2006
Time: 5:00 - 9:00 PM
Location: Dakota Jazz Club and Restaurant
1010 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Tickets: General Admission $50
Reserved Seating $100
Bar Booths (seat 3) $400
Stage Side Tables for 8 $1,500
