Brett Singer & Associates, LLC
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE
CREATIVE TIME PRESENTS
THE CLASSICAL THEATRE OF HARLEM AND PAUL CHAN
WAITING FOR GODOT
August 27, 2007
The OBIE, Drama Desk and Lortel
Award-winning Classical Theatre of Harlem (CTH) is pleased to announce that
their acclaimed
production of WAITING FOR GODOT, directed by Christopher
McElroen, will
be presented in New Orleans by Creative Time and visual artist Paul Chan. In 2006, CTH staged a post-Katrina
production of WAITING FOR GODOT hailed as “bracing and immediate … A
thrilling new Godot for our times” by Time Out New York.
By means of a series of partnerships with
visual artist Paul Chan, New York based public arts organization Creative Time,
University of New Orleans, Xavier University, the 9th Ward Renaissance Project,
the 7th Ward Porch Project, the Neighborhood Story Project, and four local high
schools, the Classical Theatre of Harlem will present free outdoor performances
of WAITING FOR GODOT in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans on
November 2nd and 3rd and in the Gentilly section of New
Orleans on November 9th and 10th. The production, which will once again
feature New Orleans native and CTH company member, Wendell Pierce, represents
an opportunity to be part of a truly unique alliance between New York and New
Orleans organizations in a joint effort to help foster community development
and recovery through the arts in a post-Katrina New Orleans. This project is being funded by CTH's New York partner, Creative Time.
"WAITING FOR GODOT in New
Orleans" has evolved into an ambitious multi-faceted undertaking including
a number of community projects. Chan is now in New Orleans to teach at Xavier
University and The University of New Orleans; and members of The Classical
Theater of Harlem are working with high schools and community organizations and
will hold auditions for the play in August. A series of pot-luckcommunity dinners and
conversations will be held in different neighborhoods with the producers and
cast in October, and a “shadow” fund, matching the production budget
dollar-for-dollar, will be given to local organizations for re-building efforts
in neighborhoods where the play is presented. Creative Time Books will release
a New Orleans Reader and host events with the artists in NYC in early spring
2008.
About The Classical Theatre of Harlem
Classical Theatre of Harlem (CTH), a
nonprofit theatre company, was founded in 1999 by Christopher McElroen and
Alfred Preisser. In each of its productions—which have included numerous works
by Shakespeare, a new stage adaptation of Richard Wright’s Native Son,
Melvin Van Peebles’ Ain’t Supposed To Die A Natural Death and Jean
Genet’s seminal political drama, The Blacks: A Clown Show—the Classical
Theatre of Harlem is dedicated to producing theatre that truly reflects the
diversity of ideas and racial tapestry of America. Their long list of awards
includes 5 OBIE Awards, 2 Lucille Lortel Awards, Drama Desk Award, Edwin Booth
Award for Artistic Excellence, among many others.
About Paul Chan
Working in a variety of mediums, from video
to installation to drawing, Paul Chan has achieved international acclaim for both
his installations and his digital projections that blend a novel drawing and
animating style with philosophical reflections on politics, war, and life in
the present tense. Chan's work has been exhibited worldwide for the past
several years. Recent solo exhibitions include: Serpentine gallery, London;
StedelijkMuseum, Amsterdam (2007); Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; UCLA
Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (2005). He has also worked with the Nobel peace
prize nominated aid group Voices in the Wilderness (with whom he spent an
unsanctioned month in Iraq) and designed The People's Guide to the Republican
National Convention (an agitprop map of New York City for use by protesters and
delegates in 2004).
About Creative Time
Creative Time, the New York based non-profit
public arts organization, has presented innovative art for the past three
decades. We work with artists and audiences to explore ideas that shape society
to ensure that art remains a meaningful part of society, available and relevant
to millions of people beyond differences of race, class, religion, or culture.
At times commemorative and spectacular, recent projects range from Tribute in
Light, which served as a gesture of hope and healing after 9/11, to Light
Cycle, an experimental explosion of fireworks that celebrated Central Park's
150th anniversary, and Who Cares a series of projects that explored art and
social action.
For more information about this special
event, please visit www.creativetime.org and www.classicaltheatreofharlem.org.
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