"Backstage With Bellamy" - An Evening of Celebration
For Immediate Release May 4, 2007
Contacts:
Christopher James
Communications
University of Minnesota Libraries
612-625-9148
Julie McGarvie
Marketing Director
Penumbra Theatre Company
651-288-6784
"BACKSTAGE WITH BELLAMY"
An Evening of Celebration
May 4, 2007; Minneapolis, MN: Penumbra Theatre Company and the Friends of the University of Minnesota Libraries are pleased to present “Backstage with Bellamy,” an evening of performance and celebration marking Penumbra’s 30 year history and the recent acquisition of Penumbra’s archive by the University Libraries. Free and open to the public, “Backstage with Bellamy” takes place Wednesday, May 16, 2007, at 7:30 p.m. at Willey Hall Auditorium, 225 19th Avenue South, Minneapolis, on the University’s West Bank campus.
The evening’s festivities offer a look behind the scenes in the making of award winning theatre. Bellamy will share personal and artistic highlights and memories and Penumbra favorites Benny Cannon, Shawn Hamilton, T. Mychael Rambo, Dennis Spears, and J.D. Steele will perform live as “The Doves,” smooth crooners of soul, from Penumbra’s upcoming show, Get Ready. Sanford Moore will accompany on piano. A special exhibition of materials from Penumbra’s archive will be on display in Elmer L. Andersen Library on the University campus. This exhibit will be up through May 25. A desert reception will follow the performance.
For immediate release.
February 27, 2007
Contact: Julie McGarvie
Penumbra Theatre
651-288-6784
February 27, 2007; St. Paul, MN: As a proactive measure to ensure ongoing financial stability, Penumbra Theatre Company announced the decision to cancel the production of I Just Stopped by to See the Man originally scheduled to run April 12 – May 6, 2007.
“Four years ago, Penumbra committed to an aggressive restructuring plan designed to eliminate old debt and build capacity. A key component of the plan was to improve financial performance. Ironically, the cancellation of this show is testament to better governance, accounting, and communications systems that allow us to foresee a potential challenge and seek ways to address it. Penumbra had hoped to launch a 30th Anniversary campaign last fall and unfortunately it was unavoidably delayed in getting off the ground. While we are confident in the campaign, there is a chance that the anticipated income may not be received by June 30, 2007. Therefore, we felt it prudent to make a mid-year adjustment,” stated David Abrams, Board Chair.
For immediate release.
January 26, 2007
Contact: Julie McGarvie
Penumbra Theatre
651-288-6784
January, 26, 2007; St. Paul, MN: Penumbra Theatre Company, the nation’s preeminent African American theatre, proudly announces a series of workshops offered in conjunction with the RACE: Are We So Different? exhibit of the Science Museum of Minnesota. Meet Your Metaphor: Penumbra Theatre’s RACE Workshop Series is designed to be an active and creative forum for dialogue and discussion around issues raised by the exhibit.
The Workshops, a component of Art for Social Change, the Educational and Outreach Program of Penumbra Theatre Company, encourage thought, dialogue and action around issues of representation and social justice through the use of improvisation, story-telling, forum theatre and facilitated break-away sessions. Facilitators use theatrical techniques established by theorist and activist Augusto Boal to encourage participants to question, constructively criticize and problem-solve. By sharing experiences, participants empower one another and discover universal truths through the specificity of their own lives. The process does not try to make everyone equal; it strives for balance. It celebrates human difference, recognizes cultural nuance and invites everyone to participate in the creation of something none of us could do alone.
