Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Season One, Yvette Heyliger | Tags: African-American Theatre, Anne Hamilton, Dramaturg, Hamilton Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, League of Professional Theatre Women, Los Angeles Theatre, LPTW, New work, NYC Theatre, Season One, TheatreNow! Artists, Twinbiz, Women Theatre Artists, Yvette Heyliger
Congratulations to Season One Guest Yvette Heyliger, who continues to perform her one woman show BRIDGE TO BARAKA. Catch her in NY or LA. Yvette completed an MFA in Playwrighting from Queens College a couple of years ago, and has returned to the stage as well as continuing as an active producer.
1 More Show in NY for Black History Month
1 Show in LA for Women’s History Month
Playwright/actor Yvette Heyliger is pleased to announce that during Back History Month she will be performing 30 minutes of her solo show, Bridge to Baraka, directed by Mario Giacalone in John Chatterton’s Midwinter Madness Short Play Festival. The remaining show is on Sunday, February 24th @ 4:15pm, Roy Arias Theatre, 300 West 43rd Street # 402 (at 8th Avenue). Tickets are $13.00. Click here to purchase your tickets today! A Talk back with the playwright following the show can be arranged upon request
Emboldened by the 1960′s Black Arts Movement, Yvette X stakes her claim as a female dramatist coming of age during the ongoing fight for parity in the American Theatre. Bridge to Baraka is Yvette’s first one-woman show and marks her return to performing since appearing on the NBC hit, Cosby Show. Martin Denton, nytheatre.com critic, said, “Heyliger has clearly carved out a successful life for herself since then as actor and then playwright/activist (she’s a notable campaigner for parity for women playwrights on the American stage).”
During Women’s History Month, Yvette is pleased to announce that she will be heading to the West Coast to perform Bridge to Baraka in the Los Angeles Women’s Theatre Festival. The show will be at the Renberg Theater on Friday, March 22nd @ 8pm. For tickets and information visit http://www.lawtf.org.
Photo by Miriam Berkley
Filed under: Season One, Yvette Heyliger | Tags: African-American Theatre, Anne Hamilton, Audelco Awards (NYC), hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, League of Professional Theatre Women, New work, NYC Theatre, Season One, TheatreNow! Artists, Twinbiz, Women Theatre Artists, Yvette Heyliger
RE-AIRING SATURDAY @ 8:30PM! AUDELCO winner, playwright/producer, Obama Fellow YVETTE HEYLIGER on INSIDE NEW YORK. Three ways to tune in! Time Warner Cable, channel 56; http://www.mnn.org, channel 2; or RNC channel 83.
Yvette talks with host Joan Allen about her career in theater as an actress (Cosby Show), producing artist (Twinbiz) and playwright and the plight of women in theater today! She recently produced, “A Seat at the Table,” a standing room only reading of 10 minute plays by women of color! Yvette also discusses the role of activism and her decision to become a volunteer in Obama’s re-election campaign. Don’t miss it!
Filed under: Fractured Atlas, Kristin Marting, Quiara Alegria Hudes, Season One, Season Three, Season Two, TheatreNow! Artists, Valentina Fratti, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Dramaturg, Fractured Atlas, Hamilton Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, Helaine Gawlica, LPTW, Pulitzer Prize Winner, TheatreNow! Artists
Many thanks to the League of Professional Theatre Women, which has given TheatreNow! its own webpage at https://theatrewomen.org/theatrenow-podcasts. Read how my membership in the League influenced my creation of the podcast series. The League is the nation’s premiere professional organization for women working in all aspects of the theatre.
LPTW and TheatreNow!
I conceived of TheatreNow! in 2009 while serving as the Co-Secretary of the League of Professional Theatre Women. I was so excited to attend meetings and converse with terrific theatre artists and learn about their experience and new projects. I started to think about how wonderful it would be to record these conversations and share them with the public in order to preserve important events in contemporary American theatre history.
So I decided to download some free recording software and use available resources on the internet to record some interviews. I happened to meet Quiara Alegría Hudes’ mother, and asked for her daughter’s contact information. Quiara was happy to give me an interview, and so, TheatreNow! was launched. I followed the inaugural podcast with interviews with women whose careers I felt were interesting and important.
I made sure to include women from many different disciplines, and even now I actively seek out women of different races, nationalities and professions in order to give a balanced and inclusive sampling of contemporary theatre practice.
And so, TheatreNow! grew from one half-hour recording to a series with a new website at http://hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, an Archivist – the marvelous Helaine Gawlica, a staff of Program Assistants, and a theme composed by my Co-Secretary Nancy Ford. The series is posted on soundcloud.com, and is very easy to download and share.
In Season Two I began to post transcripts of the interviews for the public’s convenience. AMERICAN THEATRE published a two-page article on the series in its October 2012 issue.
I am now planning my fourth season, and rest assured, it will continue to feature League members, and women whom the League has honored with prizes for their contribution to American theatre.
Anne Hamilton, Producer and Host
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow!
Email: hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow@gmail.com
www.hamiltonlit.com
TheatreNow! Podcasts With League Members:
- Kristin Marting
- Valentina Fratti
- Yvette Heyliger
Please download the article here: LPTW and TheatreNow! by Anne Hamilton
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions for the purposes of Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! must be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Jennifer Tipton, Judith Malina, Kamilah Forbes, Kate Valk, Kristin Marting, Margo Jefferson, Maria Alexandria Beech, Murielle Borst Tarrant, Quiara Alegria Hudes, Rae Smith, Season One, Season Three, Season Two, TheatreNow! Artists, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Gender Parity, Hamilton Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, League of Professional Theatre Women, Season One, Season Three, Season Two, TheatreNow! Artists, Women Theatre Artists
Many thanks to AMERICAN THEATRE magazine (October 2012 – Theatre Communications Group) for publishing a 2-page article on TheatreNow! Margot Melcon wrote an informative and thorough piece on TheatreNow!’s origins, and place in the contemporary gender parity movement.
Download the article here: AMERICAN THEATRE article on TheatreNow! by Margot Melcon (October 2012)
“There’s been a lot of discussion over the past few years about women’s voices being underrepresented in the theatre—there aren’t enough female playwrights being produced, not enough women in executive positions in regional theatres, not enough female directors or roles for female actors. And not enough women speak out as informed, educated, experienced and qualified representatives in the field. Though there has been a flood of discussion about gender disparity, talking doesn’t always lead to action.
But Anne Hamilton isn’t just talking. In response to the acknowledged under-representation that leads to so much frustration, the New York City–based freelance dramaturg, script consultant and playwright has offered up a solution…”
http://hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Season One, TheatreNow! Artists, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow | Tags: Director, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, New work, NYC Theatre, Playwright, Season One, TheatreNow! Artists, www.hamiltonlit.com, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow
Here is the latest news from Season One’s guests Yvette Heyliger and Yvonne Farrow, who continue to show civic pride and responsibility.
WRITING THE ELECTION
Calling all Playwrights, Actors, and Directors
Writing the Election is a non-partisan theatre/voter registration event. This purpose of this event, supported by Classical Theatre of Harlem and New Black Fest, is to come together as a theatre community to share our work in the service of boosting low voter registration. The Daily News reported that, “New York ranks 47th in the nation, with less than 64% of eligible residents registered.” The last day to register to vote In New York is Tuesday, October 9th.
Writing the Election 2012. Produced by Twinbiz and hosted by Dr. Barbara Ann Teer’s National Black Theatre on Monday, October 29th in Harlem This non-partisan community event is free and open to the public. On-going voter registration will be held in the lobby. You can RSVP for this event on President Obama’s web site.
In this non-partisan theatre/voter registration event, writers of all stripes are invited to submit ten-minute plays, short scenes or monologues about the upcoming presidential election. Subject matter can include (but is not limited to) any aspect of the political process: the issues, civic life, government, ideals vs. reality, leadership, public service, voting, etc. Diversity of opinions on either side of the aisle and in-between are welcome! These non-partisan plays, moderated by a guest political pundit, are being read to celebrate the joy of democracy and to inspire citizens to get out and vote on Election Day.
Scripts must be submitted no later than September 21st at 11:59pm. For more information and to submit your play* or your directing resume, please contact: Yvette Heyliger at Writing the Election. Actors with cold-reading skills should email/bring pix and resume for on-site casting beginning at 6:00pm. There is no submission fee for playwrights. There is no compensation for the actors or directors.
* Plays should be no longer than ten pages, in 12 point Times New Roman font, and in standard playwriting format. Monologues should be one page only and in 12 point Times New Roman font.
Filed under: Season One, TheatreNow! Artists, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow | Tags: Actor, African-American Theatre, Anne Hamilton, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, New work, NYC Theatre, Playwright, TheatreNow! Artists, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow
Filed under: Season One, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow | Tags: Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, Los Angeles Theatre, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow
TheatreNow! guests Yvette Heyliger and Yvonne Farrow continue their involvement in groundbreaking grassroots theatre and community programs. Here is a recent press release from their creation, the National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
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National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day Program Awareness & Prevention through “Edutainment” A Free Community Event! |
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LOS ANGELES, CA - Friday, February 10, 2012 In the spirit of Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility), four important community organizations have joined efforts to mark National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day: Twinbiz, I Choose Life, the African American Cultural Center and the Senut Sisterhood.The program is a free event that will take place at the African American Cultural Center, 3018 West 48thStreet, Los Angeles, CA 90043, Friday February 10, 2012 at 7:00PM. This Ujima Event is not just for those who may be afflicted with the virus. It is for anyone who wants to live a pro-active, health-conscious life. The program offers to the community HIV awareness and prevention through the power of “edutainment”. The NBH/A Awareness Day program will begin at 6:30PM with a Community Reception hosted by the Senut Sisterhood whose Chair, Chimbuko Tembo, will serve as Mistress of Ceremonies. The Senut Sisterhood is dedicated to social service and social action focusing on providing programs to support young girls and women of the African American community. At 7:00PM the program will begin with a Reading of Excerpts from Yvette Heyliger’s “What Would Jesus Do?” winner of multiple AUDELCO Recognition Awards for Excellence in Black Theatre. A tragic, yet humorous play about family, church, sex and HIV. The cast includes Debi Anderson, Adilah Barnes, Lynne Conner, Yvonne Farrow, Danielle Green, Andre Henry, Stevie Mack, Iona Morris, Michael A. Shepperd, John Wesley and Emily Yancy, live music by Larry Farrow. This year’s play reading is in honor the Second Annual National Black HIV/AIDS Theater Initiative: Produce A Play/Save A Life! Its purpose is to inspire and enlist playwrights, producers, actors, presenting organizations and churches to write, read or produce at least one play a season in Black theatres, churches, youth and senior centers, high schools, colleges, prisons and living rooms across America until this preventable disease, where Blacks continue to account for more than half the nation’s new infection rates, is eradicated. In 2011 the NBH/A Theatre Initiative kicked off with a Resolution from the City of Los Angeles. Of this theater ministry Yvonne Farrow of Twinbiz states, “If we don’t deal with this epidemic today, there may not be anyone around to celebrate Black History Month tomorrow.” Furthering the idea that theatre can be used to illumine critical issues in the community through edutainment, Tony Wafford, President/CEO, I Choose Life Health and Wellness Center, will present a Response & Update with special guest speaker Jo Valentine, MSW, Associate Director for Health Equity, Division of STD Prevention, NCHHSTP, who will respond to the material presented, as well as give updates on the current status of HIV/AIDS, prevention and treatment. Support materials with further information and testing will be provided. Rounding out the program, Dr. Maulana Karenga, Executive Director, African American Cultural Center (Us), and Creator of Kwanzaa and the Nguzo Saba (from which the third principle, Ujima comes), will give a framework in which to best understand, appreciate and utilize all of the material that has been presented through open dialogue entitled, Conversation in Community, and bring to realization the year round practice of Ujima, Collective Work and Responsibility, “to build and maintain our community together and make our brother’s and sister’s problems our problems and to solve them together.” Also serving on the Q&A panel are Valentine, Wafford, Tembo and Farrow. For more information, or to get directions to the African American Cultural Center call 323.299.6124. |
Filed under: Season One, Yvette Heyliger | Tags: African-American Theatre, Anne Hamilton, Dramaturg, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, New work, NYC, Playwright, TheatreNow! Artists, Twinbiz, Yvette Heyliger
Congratulations to Season One guest Yvette Heyliger, who will have a reading of her new play in NYC.
YVETTE X: BRIDGE TO BARAKA
Monday, December 19th, 7-10pm
Frank Silvera Writer’s Workshop
Filed under: Season One, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow | Tags: African-American Theatre, Producer, Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow
| Here is a message from Yvette and Yvonne, partners at Twinbiz, and the subjects of TheatreNow! Season One, Episode Seven, describing their experience receiving a national award for their producing work. These groundbreaking and multitalented artists have been recognized for their innovation.
From Yvette and Yvonne:On August 1, 2011, with 25+ productions under our belt, Yvette and I received the first ever National Black Theatre Festival ‘Emerging Producer’ Awardin its 22 year history. It was amazing being in the company of, and honored alongside, the best of the best African American producers, performers, designers, playwrights, directors, philanthropists, humanitarians, living legends and stars of stage and screen. For our colleagues, friends, family and patrons unable to attend, we’d like to share our acceptance speeches and express our love and gratitude to YOU for all your support over the years. Yvonne & Yvette |
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Yvonne’s Acceptance Speech
 Thank you, Mrs. Hamlin, co-directors, the board, staff, volunteers and supporters of the National Black Theatre Festval.If necessity is the mother of invention, then producing is her second born.
Producing for Twinbiz first began out of necessity – Yvette and I getting our works done by any means necessary – and grew into a craft we love and are empowered by.
To artists everywhere, I say: Don’t sit around praying to God, hoping someone will produce your work. Spirit can only do for you what it can do thorough you. With God as your ‘silent’ partner, know that you are equipped and well able.
I’d especially like to thank my partner and twin sister, Yvette Heyliger, without whom Twinbiz would not exist; my husband, Larry Farrow (aka Piano Man Productions), who has supported many of our projects both financially and through his music; my mentor, Steve Duncan, a television writer/producer and creator of the hit show, Tour of Duty, who taught me the craft of screen writing, pitching and the art of the deal; publicist and producer, the late Gay Iris Parker who believed in our first major production, Homegirl, which became our first prouction here at the NBTF.
And finally to Larry Leon Hamlin, who over the years, would pick up the phone to call me in LA just to say hi, chat about the industry, or check in with how Twinbiz was doing. Life is spirit. Spirit is eternal. Thank you, Mr. Hamlin.
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Yvette’s Acceptance Speech
Women playwrights receive less than 20% of production opportunities in the American Theatre nationwide. Women playwrights of color receive even less than half of that, somewhere around 7% and as low as 1%.So what to do? The answer to that question is what makes the Emerging Producer Award so important.In 2001 Yvonne and I were the new kids on the block. Larry Leon gave a woman playwright, yours truly, and two women producers a shot on his national stage alongside well-established theatre companies, not once but four times!Thank you to Larry Leon for making this day possible; to Lawrence Evans who introduced Twinbiz to the festival; to Sylvia, Mable and Gerry for ensuring this great legacy continues for future generations of producers and theatre artists. Thank you to Voza Rivers and Woodie King, Jr. who have provided Twinbiz with advice on producing over the years; to my sister and partner Yvonne, her husband Larry, and my husband Donald.And finally, thank you to fellow honoree, Samm-Art Williams who encouraged me to write my first play and started me on this journey.
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About the NBTF’s Emerging Producer Award
The National Black Theatre Festival (NBTF), founded by the late Larry Leon Hamlin, has been held biennially since 1989. The event attracts thousands of national and international patrons, theatre professionals and scholars to Winston-Salem. Approximately 35 companies are selected to perform during the week for a total of over 100 performances.
The NBTF Emerging Producer Award was created to celebrate the achievements of rising theatrical producers, to encourage their continued growth in the industry, and to bring about the awareness of the need to both reach back to acknowledge those independent producers who have been in the trenches presenting work “by any means necessary,” as well as to inspire and raise-up new producers of color. This award ensures the health, longevity and future of Black Theatre, work for its theatre artists, and the continued inclusion of black plays in the canon of American Theatre. For more information visit www.nbtf.org.
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Filed under: Yvette Heyliger, Yvonne Farrow | Tags: African-American Theatre, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, Los Angeles Theatre, National Black Theatre Festival, NYC Theatre, TheatreNow! Artists, Twinbiz, Yvette Heyliger
Congratulations, TheatreNow! guests Yvette Heyliger and Yvonne Farrow.
As Twinbiz™ partners (twins in the business), they have been selected to receive the inaugural National Black Theatre Festival Emerging Producer Award. The festival, which showcases outstanding Black Theatre from around the country, will be held August 1 – 6, 2011 in Winston-Salem, NC. The twins will be presented with this honor at the Opening Night Gala Awards Banquet on August 1st.
The National Black Theatre Festival (NBTF), founded by the late Larry Leon Hamlin, has been held biennially since 1989. The event attracts thousands of national and international patrons, theatre professionals and scholars to Winston-Salem. Approximately 35 companies are selected to perform during the week for a total of over 100 performances. For more information and to buy tickets visit http://www.nbtf.org.
The NBTF Emerging Producer Award was created to celebrate the achievements of rising theatrical producers, to encourage their continued growth in the industry, and to bring about the awareness of the need to both reach back to acknowledge those independent producers who have been in the trenches presenting work “by any means necessary,” as well as to inspire and raise-up new producers of color. This award ensures the health, longevity and future of Black Theatre, work for its theatre artists, and the continued inclusion of black plays in the canon of American Theatre.
The twins have been “producing coast to coast” for over twenty years. The TheatreNow! interview revealed the creative process of WWDJ?, written and directed by Yvette, and starring Yvonne.
For a full press release, contact Yvette at twinbiznyc@aol.com
