SHE / HER

  • PS21 Open-Air Pavilion Theater

    2980 New York 66
    Chatham, New York 12037
Ticket Price $20.00-$80.00 This event is now over
Description

Nicole Ansari directs local actors in SHE/HER, monologues that explore memory and identity. Ansari is a celebrated actor, director, writer, and the founder of Actors Rising, an organization devoted to promoting collective healing through art. In SHE/HER, eight performers animate their meditative vignettes about identity, heritage, and personhood with music, humor, and drama.

Liza, a teenager on the verge of womanhood, ties the stories of seven women of varied ages and ethnicities to one another through her active witness, engendering the impassioned exploration of SHE/HER. Interweaving music and humor, the monologues deepen the women’s connections with the Earth and Sky as they disengage from their bodies over the course of a year without physical contact, while they evaluate unspoken assumptions about identity and the African diaspora. 

In the opening monologue, Liza’s mother grapples with her lifelong habit of apologizing and lays bare her inner conflict through a violin duet with her daughter. Their musical conversation unites them, not only as mother and child, but also as women. As one monologue follows another, the women fall away, their stories complete yet opening the way to a new narrative, as Liza remains to assimilate and preserve their histories and those of the women who came before them.  

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Venue Details

PS21 Open-Air Pavilion Theater

2980 New York 66
Chatham, New York 12037 PS21 Open-Air Pavilion Theater
PS21: Performance Spaces for the 21st Century

Established in Chatham, NY in 2006, PS21 supports innovative performing artists and creators and introduces their work to a broader audience, while also providing the surrounding region with opportunities for arts engagement regardless of economic status, cultural background, and age.

 

Five acres of PS21's 100+ acres are developed; the rest are meadows and woodlands. Situated near the theater are the Dance Barn, a rehearsal and performance venue, and two artists’ residences accommodating sixteen individuals. The PS21 property is also host to the Chatham Farm Animal Rescue. PS21's new theater and rural campus are important resources for both visiting artists and the community, optimized for the public's enjoyment and to encourage citizen expression and participation. 

 

The 350-seat theater is a state-of-the-art, green facility offering resident makers and performers the tools and flexibility for successful innovation and collaboration in the development of sophisticated multi-media work. Few other US facilities are able to provide this level of technical support. PS21 operates year-round, supporting performances by and residencies for dancers, choreographers, musicians, composers, actors and creators. The summer season is PS21's public highlight, during which a full calendar of performances is augmented with a myriad of events and workshops, many of which are free of charge and involve community collaboration with the gifted artists in residence.

 

PHOTOGRAPHY
PS21 will take photos of this event for use in social media and on our website. The photos sometimes include audiences. Your attendance at this performance indicates you consent to appear in PS21 photography. If you would prefer not to appear in any photos, please let a staff member know, and we will be glad to accommodate your request.


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