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Democracy & Fayettenam

Democracy & Fayettenam

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Emerson Theater Colaborative presents, Democracy & Fayettenam, a reflective solo performance from acclaimed performance artist Jay Ruby. The one-of-a-kind performance features spoken word and physical theater, addressing Early Settlement, American Transience/American Conscience, Water, Ghosts in the Mountain and Johnny Appleseed. Through the show, Ruby examines the roots and consequences of deep cultural conflict when approaching our relationship to the land, the future and each other. Produced by Camilla Ross

Jay Ruby is the founder and director of The Carpetbag Brigade, an international touring company specializing in acrobatic stilt walking. He also founded the Tsunami on the Square performing arts festival and Global Stilt Congress. He is currently based in Prescott, Arizona.

Jay Ruby, playwright and performer, Democracy & Fayettenam

We are pleased to announce that Dahveed Nelsen will be in attendance of all three productions.

On May 19th, 1968, a little over a month after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr left this physical realm, Dahveed approached his understudy at the anti-poverty program (Abiodun Oyewole) along with Gylan Kain (currently living in Amsterdam) to head to Marcus Garvey Park on Malcolm X’s birthday.  Due to the courage and consciousness associated with this brave act to stand up and speak up, The Last Poets were formed.  Considered the fathers of rap along with their west coast colleagues (The Watts Prophets), The Last Poets have carved out their niche in this existence and continue their mission just as passionately as they did 55 years ago. Dahveed is the visionary, leader and elder of the association and has been called the 1st prophet of Hip Hop by the Cleveland Free Times.
When asked about himself and his work Dahveed replied, “I am searching for ways to give my writing the power and expressiveness of Black music and also for ways to express the divinity of the life force both in my writing and in myself”.
Dahveed spends most of his time between Detroit, Ghana and the Southwest (Sedona AZ and Salida CO).

Dahveed Nelsen, Sedona Resident, and writer.

Dates/Times:

  • Thursday, February 1st, 7pm
  • Friday, February 2nd, 7pm
  • Saturday, February 3rd, 2pm

Ticketing In-Person:

  • Advance Purchase / General Seating – $35
  • Advance Purchase / Reserved Seating – $45 (pick your seats with our reserved “seating” map)
  • At-the-Door – $45

No Refunds!

Location:
Verde Valley School | Brady Hall
3511 Verde Valley School Rd
Sedona, AZ 86351

Indecent

Indecent

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Join Emerson Theater Collaborative for this deeply moving play inspired by the true events surrounding the controversial 1923 Broadway debut of Sholem Asch’s God of Vengeance—a play seen by some as a seminal work of Jewish culture, and by others as an act of traitorous libel. Indecent charts the history of an incendiary drama and the path of the artists who risked their careers and lives to perform it.

Written by Paula Vogel. Produced by Jon Capozzoli and Camilla Ross

Dates/Times:

  • Friday, October 6th, 7pm
  • Saturday, October 7th, 2pm & 7pm
Ticketing In-Person:
  • Advance Purchase / General Seating – $35
  • Advance Purchase / Reserved Seating – $45 (pick your seats with our reserved “seating” map)
  • At-the-Door – $45

No Refunds!

CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS!

 

PLAYWRIGHT:

Paula Vogel is a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright whose plays are produced throughout the world. INDECENT opened on Broadway in April 2017 and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play. HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE received the Pulitzer Prize, Lortel Prize, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and New York Drama Critics awards for Best Play, and her second OBIE Award. Other plays include THE LONG CHRISTMAS RIDE HOME, THE MINEOLA TWINS, THE BALTIMORE WALTZ, HOT ‘N’ THROBBING, DESDEMONA, AND BABY MAKES SEVEN, THE OLDEST PROFESSION, A CIVIL WAR CHRISTMAS, and DON JUAN COMES HOME FROM IRAQ. Most recent awards include the American Theater Hall of Fame Award, the Dramatists Guild Lifetime Achievement Award, the Lillys, the Thornton Wilder Prize, the OBIE Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the NY Drama Critics’ Circle Award. She is honored to have three awards dedicated to emerging playwrights in her name: the American College Theater Festival, the Paula Vogel Award given annually by the Vineyard Theatre, and the recent Paula Vogel mentor’s award by Young Playwrights of Philadelphia. Her plays are published in six volumes by TCG Press and she teaches playwriting workshops throughout the United States and abroad. For more, please visit www.paulavogelplaywright.com

 

ACTORS:

  • Elie Benhiyoun
  • Brad Burgess
  • Jerry Goralnick
  • Jeremy Goren
  • Emma Harris
  • Cathy Salit
  • Shoshana Wilder
S’mores n Stories: Friendships from around the world.

S’mores n Stories: Friendships from around the world.

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S’mores N Stories: Friendships from around the world can be like pen pals that we greet and maybe one day we meet. An original play was written by the cast of S’more’s N Stories. Cast is part of Emerson Theater Collaborative’s 2023 Summer Youth Theatre Program. An Original Play by the cast of ETC’s Summer Youth Theatre Program. Directed by Stephanie Donnelly
DATES:
  • Friday, July 28th, 7pm
  • Saturday, July 29th, 2pm
TICKETING:
  • Adults – $20
  • Children (12 and under) – $12
No refunds.
Summer Youth Theatre Program Cast:
  • Logan B, age 10
  • Oliver B, age 7
  • Clark B, age 8
  • Goldie B, age 6
  • Henry B, age 10
  • Lochlen G, age 7
  • Mia G, age 10
  • Analise L, age 7
  • Kailas M, age 7
  • Athena M, age 13
  • Riley M, age 14
  • Kyla O, age 12
  • Adeline P, age 6
  • Vanessa P, age 11
  • Viana R, age 8
  • Ella  Y, age 6
  • Adisht S, age 8
  • Kendall W, age 10
  • Rowan W, age 8
LOCATION:
First United Methodist Church
23 Willow Street
Mystic, CT 06355
House with No Walls

House with No Walls

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Coming to Sedona, Arizona is another “unforgettable live theater” produced by Emerson Theater Collaborative and Camilla Ross.
A bitter public battle erupts when it is revealed that the site of a new museum enshrining American liberty is the ground on which George Washington’s slaves’ house once stood. An African-American political activist occupies the site, demanding that the house be recreated as a reminder of the reality of slavery in our history and a memorial to the slaves’ lives. He is opposed by a controversial African-American conservative author, who argues that blacks must lay aside their pursuit of victimhood if they are to achieve true equality. Their conflict is juxtaposed against the story of Oney Judge, one of Washington’s slaves, as she struggles with the decision of whether to risk everything to escape her bondage. Moving in time between the present and the past, the play explores our relationship to troubling historical reality. How do we decide which elements of our history will be commemorated and which will be forgotten?
House with No Walls is a special arrangement by Playscripts. Directed by Ashley Adelman
Ticketing In-Person theater costs. Pick your seats with our  reserved “seating” map.
• Advance /Reserved Seating – $55 (sit at table with your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
•Advance /Reserved Table – $165 (reserve an entire table of three for your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
•Advance Purchase – $35
•At-the-Door – $45
Click here to buy in-house tickets today to watch February 3-5th.
Click here to buy live-stream tickets to watch on February 5th at 2pm MST ($20 plus fees).
Click here to buy on-demand tickets to watch anytime during February 10th, 11th and 12th ($20 plus fees).
The Great Gatsby – Live Radio Play

The Great Gatsby – Live Radio Play

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The Emerson Theater Collaborative presents F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1940s radio broadcast in this spirited adaptation of The Great Gatsby. Characters come to life on stage of the WBFR radio station for a live broadcast, punctuated by 40s-era commercials. A story of triumph and tragedy that reflects the decadence of the Jazz Age and the perils of the American Dream.  Special arrangement by Playscripts. Produced by Camilla Ross. Directed by Ashley Adelman.
Event Dates – February 2-4, 2023
  • Friday & Saturday – 7pm (In-Theater Only)
  • Sunday* – 2pm (In-theater and Live-Stream/Audio Only available)
Tickets:
In-Person theater costs. Choose your seats with our new “seating” map.
  • Advance /Reserved Seating – $55 (sit at table with your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
  • Advance /Reserved Table – $165 (reserve an entire table of three for your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
  • Advance – $35
  • At Door – $45

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE IN-HOUSE TICKETS

Listen from home via our Audio Live-Stream – $20 (Link for purchase coming soon)
Sell Me: I am from North Korea

Sell Me: I am from North Korea

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Sora Baek in performance of her one woman play, Sell Me: I am from North Korea
Sell Me: I am from North Korea is a one woman show inspired by the true stories of North Korean defectors, A profound portrait of people who risked everything to escape one of the world’s most repressive regimes. Premiered at the 2019 International Human Rights Art Festival in New York.
Written by and performed by Korean-born playwright, Sora Baek. Produced by Camilla Ross and Emerson Theater Collaborative.
Show dates:
October 13-14th – 7pm
October 15th – 2pm & 7pm
You may also want to attend our SIGHTS | SOUNDS | SAMPLINGS of the Korean-American Experience on Wednesday, October 12th from 4:30pm to 6:30pm for a truly immersive cultural journey. Details coming soon !
In-Theater Ticket Prices:
Enjoy our upcoming production of unforgettable live theater on October 13th-15th.
Pick your seats with our new “seating” map.
  • Advance /Reserved Seating – $55 (sit at table with your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
  • Advance Purchase – $35
  • At-the-Door – $45
Live-Stream Details:
Watch from the comfort of your home the live-stream of Saturday’s 2pm matinee.
On-Demand Details:
Watch from the comfort of your home the on-demand video of  Saturday’s matinee. Available through
Details coming soon!
Sell Me: I am from North Korea's playwright and actor Sora Back
Actor:
SORA BAEK (Writer/Performer) is an award winning actor, writer and producer from South Korea. She has been featured on the New York Times, News 12 NJ and Voice of America. Select acting theater credits include: SELL ME: I am from North Korea (International Human Rights Festival, NYC, Jersey City Theater Center), The Storm, A Christmas Carol, and Sworn Virgin (NY and International Tour) with Blessed Unrest, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf (Calaveras Repertory Theatre), Odd Couple, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Curious Frog). Sora received Best Actress at the Epidemic Film Festival in San Francisco. She works with Only Make Believe where she creates interactive theater with children in hospitals and is an associate member of an internationally acclaimed theater company, Blessed Unrest. www.sorabaek.com
Director:
AMANDA KATE JOSHI (Director) is a NYC-based director, producer. Amanda has spent the last 15 years working on new and developing plays, as a director and an independent producer.  She sat on the Lark Play Development Company’s Literary Wing, was a reader for the Princess Grace Award in Playwrighting, and spent two years as the Colony Coordinator at for the Johnny Mercer Writers’ Colony at Goodspeed.  In 2005 she founded Wizard Oil Productions and was their Artistic Director until 2010. She has also partnered with New Georges as a Line Producer, producing close to 20 productions for the three companies.  New Georges’ A Beautiful Day in November…Great Lakes won an OBIE in 2015, and Wizard Oil’s Empire of the Tree was nominated for an Innovative Theatre Award in 2010.  Additionally, she has been an evaluator for the SDC Observership Program, been nominated for both a National Directors Fellowship and an SDC Mike Ockrent Directing Fellowship. www.amandakatejoshi.com.
True Nature of All Being

True Nature of All Being

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During 1970, in Minamata a small fishing village in Japan, a fisherman, Teru Moriya is struggling to make ends meet and to care for his family especially his young, severely disabled daughter. The livelihood of all the fishermen in the village is at stake since many people are falling ill, and the suspected culprit is mercury being drained from a nearby chemical plant and polluting the waters. People in the village are at odds since some in the village are dependent on the chemical plant for their livelihood. The illness is dividing the town, families including Teru Moriya’s and destroying individual lives. Women in the village have banded together to discover the truth, save their children and spark the global environmental movement.
Written by Lisa A. Giordano. Produced by Camilla Ross. Directed by Ashely Adelman.
When:
  • May 6th, Friday – LIVE STREAM & IN-HOUSE
  • May 7th, Saturday, 7pm IN-HOUSE
  • May 8th, Sunday, 2pm IN-HOUSE
Where:
  • Emerson Theater Collaborative at The Collective Sedona in Village of Oak Creek

In-House Tickets:

  • Click here to buy tickets!
  • Prices –
    • Advance Purchase – $35
    • At-the-Door – $45
    • Advance /Reserved Seating – $55 (sit at table with your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
    • Advance /Reserved Table – $165 (reserve an entire table of three for your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service

Click here to buy Live Stream  Tickets (May 6th 7pm PST only)!

Click here to learn more about our Pre-Show Event, SIGHTS \ SOUNDS | SAMPLINGS of the Asian-American Experience, on May 4th!

Grantors:

  • Arizona Humanities
  • Arizona Commission on the Arts
  • Puffin Foundation, LTD

 

Cast:

Asuka Morinaga Derfler plays MICHIKO MORIYA in True Nature of All Being

 

Asuka Morinaga Derfler (MICHIKO MORIYA)
Asuka Morinaga Derfler is from Hiroshima, graduated from the Toho Gakuen drama department and was a member of the Haiyuza Theater Company in Tokyo. Japan credits include: Seagull (Nina) at Haiyuza Theater, Chidori (Chidori) at Kinokuniya Southern Theater, Ino Tadaka Story (Ino Shino) at the New National Theater in Tokyo and others as well as voice over works at NHK, movies, and Play Station games. She was trained at Herbert Berkoff Studio as a scholarship student from the Japanese Government. She has performed in plays, readings, at HERE, Flea Theater,Theater@DNA and others. Voice over work at FCI and USN. She is a teaching artist at Ping Chong + Company and has also been working to develop a theater education program between NYC and Japan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zak Ma plays HIROSHI MURASAKI & MONKEY TRAINER in True Nature of All Being

 

 

 

Zak Ma (HIROSHI MURASAKI & MONKEY TRAINER)
Zak Ma is a New York based actor and physical theatre artist from Southern California. He believes in the healing power of art and aims to erase the limitations from the culmination of societal, ancestral, and cultural dictations. Zak recently created, produced, and performed in his solo show, Ma: The Exodus, an exploration of his personal experience as a Asian American immigrant. He obtained his Master’s in Acting at The Actors Studio Drama School, and his Butoh training with RenGyoSoh Butoh theatre company, where he officially became a core member since 2020. Recent performances include Ikigai (Hollywood Fringe Encore Producers’ Award), EN:2021, Ma on the Edge, and Watch Me (An Original Play by Kervigo Ensemble). zak-ma.com

 

Samantha Shen plays FUMIKO MURASAKI in True Nature of All Being

 

Samantha Shen (FUMIKO MURASAKI)
Raised in the Bay Area of California, Samantha was heavily involved in theater and music ministry. Her love for the arts continued to grow, so she moved to Los Angeles to earn her BA in Ethnomusicology at UCLA. Now, she resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she has found a balance between her life and her life’s work. Samantha shares her love of storytelling and music through releasing original songs as well as playing characters that portray minority stories, uplifting the voices that have been silenced for far too long. Instagram: @samanthashen_.  Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/samanthashenmusic

 

Shoko Rice plays HANA MORIYA in True Nature of All Being

 

Shoko Rice (HANA MORIYA) 
Shoko Rice was born and raised in Niigata, Japan. She moved to the states by herself without speaking English in 2006. She has been living in Los Angeles since, now it’s her second home. She has worked on many films and TV shows in Hollywood over a decade. Her recent film credits include her leading feature film “Call Me Emanuelle” “A Wiseguy Christmas” ”The Awakening of Emanuelle” “Kill Plan”. She proved that an immigrant with English as their second language could lead in a Hollywood film. True Nature Of All Being is her theater debut production. She is also a singer and painter, she puts so much passion into each of her works.  Instagram@shokorice

 

 

 

 

 

 

Koji Ono plays TERU MORIYA in True Nature of All Being

 

 

Koji Ono (TERU MORIYA) 
Koji Ono is originally from Japan and has been performing as a professional actor for 11 years in Shiki Theatre Company which is the most famous theatre company in Japan. Koji has performed with such shows as A Chorus Line, West Side Story, Aida, Lion King, Evita and so many other shows. He is so excited to join this amazing project “True Nature of All Being”!
Facebook:@kojiono0427       Instagram:@koji_ono1981            Twitter:@kojiono7                         Website:kojiono.com

 

 

Julie Rhee plays AUNT YOSHIKO in True Nature of All Being

 

 

Julie Rhee (AUNT YOSHIKO) 
Julie Rhee is a writer, director and actress from NYC. Her one-act plays including Mother’s Day, Blind Date, have been presented and she has also directed short plays in NYC play festivals. As an actress, she has played “Lauren” in Circle Mirror Transformation by Annie Baker, and “Juror #8” in Twelve Angry Jurors by Reginald Rose. She also enjoys stand-up comedy, and has competed at the She-Devil Comedy Fest in NYC along with forty-seven women comedians selected across the country.

 

Junko Nishiguchi Cheng plays AUNT YUIKO in True Nature of All Being

 

Junko Nishiguchi Cheng (AUNT YUIKO)
Junko Nishiguchi Cheng was raised in Osaka, New York, and Southern California where she now resides with her husband of 34 years and their two grown children. After 30+ years as an international recording artist, she switched to acting in 2018 when she was cast as the “lipstick lady” in Taylor Swift’s music video Delicate. She has since appeared in several films, commercials, and TV shows, and she is excited to be cast in her first stage production since her musical theater days in college. Junko and David are looking forward to their upcoming trip to Aruba which she won on Wheel of Fortune. IG and Twitter @junkocheng
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/junkousa or https://www.facebook.com/JunkoCheng
Instagram: @junkocheng                 Twitter: @junkocheng                           Website: www.junko.com
Permanent Collection

Permanent Collection

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Written by Thomas Gibbons
Produced by Camilla Ross
Directed by Ashley Adelman
Produced by Special Arrangements of Playscripts
Starring – Elijah Manning, Cat Ransom, James Yaw, La Rivers, Racquel McKenzie and Larry Cohen
Sponsors – City of Sedona & Caldwell Banker
Synopsis
Permanent Collection is a searing examination of racial politics that ultimately asks how much space — literally and figuratively — the white world gives to African-Americans. What is the cost of failing to view the world through another’s eyes?
Soon after African-American businessman Sterling North becomes the new director of the Morris Foundation, he discovers that this world-famous art collection includes several significant African sculptures tucked away in storage. His proposal to add them to the public galleries is opposed by the foundation’s long-time education director, who is loyal to the idiosyncratic wishes of the late Dr. Morris. Spurred on by a zealous local journalist, this clash quickly escalates to public accusations of racism and a bitter struggle for control of the collection.
When
  • Friday, February 4th @ 7pm
  • Saturday, February 5th @ 7pm
  • Sunday, February 6th @ 2pm
Ticketing
In-Person theater costs. For the first time ever, pick your seats with our new “seating” map.
  • Advance /Reserved Seating – $55 (sit at table with your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
  • Advance /Reserved Table – $165 (reserve an entire table of three for your friends/family, drink tickets available and table service)
  • Advance Purchase – $35
  • At-the-Door – $45

CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS!

Where
Emerson Theater Collaborative @ The Collective Sedona, 7000 SR 179 Suite C-100, Sedona AZ 86351
Following CDC COVID-19 recommendations for social distancing, masks and vaccinations.
Summer Youth Theatre Camp

Summer Youth Theatre Camp

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Our theater camp is for kids, 6-14 years old, who have an interest in theater and the performing arts or would like to learn more about acting, directing, lighting, stage design, creative writing and more. Led by Stephanie Donnelly, Matt Donnelly, and Christian Marshall. Camp runs Monday thru Thursday, July 3rd to July 29th. Performance dates are Saturday 7pm and Sunday at 2pm
Kids should bring their lunch, reading material, blanket and pillow, if they choose.
Limited to 20! Pre-register your kid(s) TODAY!
Early Registration, register before June 15th – $225
Regular Registration, after June 15th – $275
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Contact

Phone - AZ: +1 (860) 705-9711
Phone - CT: +1 (860) 861-3743
Email: info@emersontheatercollaborative.org

About Us

Our mission is to serve youth, under-represented communities and artists with an emphasis on diversity, by producing innovative and thought-provoking theater.
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