Inspired
by the writing, artwork & life of Bruno Schulz
Conceived
& Directed by Stacy Klein
Co-created by Carlos Uriona & Matthew Glassman
with Carroll Durand & the Double Edge Ensemble
Music Composed by Jacek Ostaszewski
Designed by Mira Zelechower Aleksiun
Art
as Healer and Provocateur
Sunday
April 22nd at 2pm
Double Edge Theatre the Farm, 948 Conway Road Ashfield, MA 01330
Box Office 413-628-0277
This free event is by reservation only due to limited seating
capacity.
Double
Edge Theatre announces our Art as Healer and Provocateur Project,
to be held at our International Farm Center in Ashfield, MA on
April 22. This first event of a series will begin with an exhibition
by the Polish-Jewish artist Mira Zelechower-Aleksiun, a performance
of the Double Edge Ensemble's Republic of Dreams,
and be followed by a reception and panel discussion led by Ilan
Stavans, Rabbi Justin David, Reverend Kate Stevens, and others. The
afternoon of art and discussion surrounds the theme of the many
ways in which art can function as a healer or provoke dialogue
about politics, in this case using the Holocaust as a pivotal
departure point. Holocaust survivor Zelechower-Aleksiun offers
her ‘Lights of Midrashes' as an entryway to the event.
Republic
of Dreams , conceived and directed by Artistic Director,
Stacy Klein, explores the writings, art, and life of Polish-Jewish
artist Bruno Schulz, and his banal death at the hands of a jealous
Nazi. Republic of Dreams recently had its world
premiere at the historic La MaMa theatre in New York City, which
Backstage Magazine called “a colorful
evocation of Schulz's peculiar sensibility…more visionary than
explanatory.” The Forward, a Jewish daily paper, described
Republic of Dreams as, “
a lesson in artistic courage…This show is not to be missed.”
Post-performance
panelists
will use this artwork, as well as their own experiences, as a
point of departure for dialogue. Panelists include Mexican-Jewish
scholar and author Ilan Stavans (“one of the most influential
figures in Latino literature in the US”, NY Times );
Congregation B'Nai Israel's Rabbi Justin David (who initiates
projects related to ethics and social justice both nationally
and internationally in Africa, Israel and India); Reverend
Kate Stevens of the Congregational Church in Ashfield;
Argentine-American activist-artist and Double Edge Actor Carlos
Uriona (his ‘military period' theatre, Diablomundo, named one
of the “Top Ten Argentine Theatres of the 20th Century” by the
Argentine Critics Association); and Double Edge Founder and Artistic
Director Stacy Klein. The panel will discuss Schulz within the
context of World War II Poland as well as the context of our own
socio- political climate. This first in a series of symposia will
focus on bringing Jewish culture, history, and artistic expression
to the Hilltown area, and will facilitate inter-faith dialogue
and promote interaction between artists, humanists, and their
communities.
This program is supported in part by the Ashfield Cultural Council, a
local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a
state agency, by the Jewish Arts & Culture Initiave of the Harold
Grinspoon Foundation, and by the Massachusetts Foundation for the
Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the
Humanities."
