Ambiance Theatre Company presented the conversation Get Off Your High Horse livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 11 January 2021 at 4 p.m. PST (San Francisco, UTC -8) / 6 p.m. CST (Chicago, UTC -6) / 7 p.m. EST (New York, UTC -5).
Get Off Your High Horse: Why Elitism doesn't work for BIPOC Theatremakers is a candid conversation among BIPOC theatremakers: Eshay Brantley, Ova Saopeng, Malick Ceesay, Wariboko Semanitari, Atlese Robison, and Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay. These artists are pushing the bounds of the American theatre by creating work that defies the implicit and explicit racism that is so pervasive in "classical" theatre.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Mother & Theater artist here in the Twin Cities. Eshay Brantley is the Director of Performance at Ambiance Theater Company. Most of her work has been collaborative and self-curated.
Ova Saopeng is an actor, teaching artist, associate artistic director, and producer with Los Angeles-based TeAda Productions. He works locally and nationally with communities of color to elevate the refugee and immigrant experience.
Malick is a playwright and music producer from the Twin Cities. He currently sits as the Associate Artistic Director of Ambiance.
Wariboko Semenitari is a 3rd-year student at the UMN/Guthrie Acting Program. He is devoted to creating accessibility of the arts to BIPOC communities.
Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay is a Lao American playwright who creates sci-fi/horror stage work that centers the experiences of the Lao Diasporia.
Atlese Robinson (moderator) is a Saint Paul-based writer, theatermaker, and the Founding Artistic Director of Ambiance Theatre Company. Atlese is currently a Naked Stages Fellow, a Springboard 20/20 Artist Fellow, and a Many Voices Mentorship Finalist. Atlese's values as a theatremaker are rooted in adding to the expansive canon of Black performance and storytelling as a means to heal, investigate, and celebrate the beauty and complexity of the African Diaspora.
This event is a collaboration between Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay (Mellon Foundation Playwright in Residence at Theater Mu) and Atlese Robinson (Founding Artistic Director of Ambiance Theatre Company) with support from HowlRound.
Ambiance Theatre Company is an emerging Black-led, woman-owned theatre company founded in November of 2018. Ambiance's mission is to support Black dramatic writers, produce new work, and engage historically underrepresented Black audiences.
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