The Burnin - National Performance Network

The Burnin’ is made possible with funding by the New England
Foundation for the Arts’ National Theater Project, with lead funding
from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Additional funding by HiARTS (Producers of the Hip-Hop Theater Festival) and by
the National Performance Network (NPN) Creation Fund Grant, cocommissioned by Junebug Productions in partnership with Hartford
Stage. The Creation Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable
Foundation, Ford Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts,
South Dallas Cultural Center and Texas Commission on the Arts.
South Dallas Cultural Center is a division of City of Dallas Office of
Cultural Affairs. All programs are subject to change without notice.
Visit www.dallasculture.org/sdculturalcenter or for more information
call 214/939-ARTS or Like us on Facebook. #sdcc365
Progress Theatre presents
The Burnin’
April 10-11, 2015
South Dallas Cultural Center Theater
3400 S. Fitzhugh Avenue
Dallas, Texas 75210
THE BURNIN’
Written and Directed by Cristal Chanelle Truscott
Music by Heather Christian and Cristal Chanelle Truscott
SYNOPSIS
It’s 1940 in the fictional City of Antebellum. As the African American
community prepares for the return of hometown hero Band Man, scheduled
to play at the local juke, the White community organizes it’s Annual
Pilgrimage Pageant; a celebration of Southern hierarchy as it was “Before
the War.” Fast forward 75 years and post-Great Migration urban residents
in the metropolis of Sittay gather to critique the policies and politics behind
contemporary headlines at a spoken word/hip hop spot. When disaster
strikes in both spaces and places, all involved are forced to examine the
meaning of community, agency and identity in the blink of an eye. As
history repeats itself, The Burnin’ straddles time between these two worlds,
examining the possibility that the more things change, the more they stay
the same.
The Burnin’ is a NeoSpiritual inspired by two major U.S. nightclub
tragedies; the Rhythm Night Club Fire of Natchez, MI (1940) and the E2
Club Stampede of Chicago, IL (2003). Through fictionalized locales, The
Burnin’ charts sociopolitical consistencies before, during and after both
disasters. Following a group of clubgoers through catastrophe to assess
complex intersections of race, gender and community during times of
trauma and survival, the piece not only questions a multitude of
stereotypes, it actively answers and dis-assembles them. Weaving
dialogue and original song, The Burnin’ traces how African Americans
receive and redefine legacies of Black identity to accommodate their
contemporary realities. Re-imagining and re-examining these American
tragedies, The Burnin’ invites audiences to look deeper into personal and
communal definitions of freedom, empowerment and the course of
“progress” we all have the power to chart.
About Progress Theatre
PROGRESS THEATRE (PT) is an international touring ensemble of
multi-disciplined performers committed to using art to encourage social
consciousness, cross-community dialogue and cultural awareness. Since
2000, PT has inspired audiences coast-to-coast with dynamic
performances that founder Cristal Chanelle Truscott has branded “
Neo-Spirituals,” a’capella musicals that are consciously, methodologically
and specifically created through Cristal’s “Soulwork: Emotional Availability,”
a unique acting/performance methodology developed from African
American performance traditions and aesthetics. Neo-Spirituals are
descendants of Negro Spirituals, Black Folklore and Slave Narratives; and
simultaneously, products of contemporary Black performance aesthetics
(hip-hop, spoken word, R&B, the blues, etc).
PT‘s growing tour repertoire includes original full-length plays
PEACHES, ‘MEMBUH (as in “Remember”) and a myriad of shorter
works. PT’s newest piece, The Burnin’, is currently on tour. PT’s unique
brand of performance blends traditional African American performance
aesthetics with contemporary artistic genre, academia with popular culture,
and politics with social realities, all contributing to the groups’ appeal to
both old and new generations of theatergoers. By engaging various
communities onstage and off, PT strives to change the make-up of average
theatergoers, encouraging audiences diverse in race, age and spiritual
background. The dream and intention of PT’s work is to explore the most
compelling, honest, unflinching ways of approaching questions of
humanity, and the social concerns and insights of our times inclusive of
race, class, gender and spiritual identity— in the service of unity through
diversity, cross-community healing and understanding.
Otto René Castillo Awards for Political Theatre recipient.
PROGRESS THEATRE ENSEMBLE BIOS
Shan Washington (Communications Assistant) is a native of Dallas, TX
where she graduated valedictorian from A. Maceo Smith High School. She
received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication with a minor
in Theatre from Prairie View A&M University. During her time at PVAMU
she was an active member of the Charles Gilpin Players, performing and
serving on the production teams of several productions. Shan brings to PT
a love for using her skills and experience in Mass Communication to build
and nurture relationships with theatregoers. She is honored to combine her
passions for Theatre and Communication in the service of Progress
Theatre!
Derrick Brent II (Topper Jr., Crush, Topper Sr.) holds a BA in Theatre
from Prairie View A&M University. He became an ensemble member
of Progress Theatre in 2010, joining the cast of PEACHES. Since
graduation, Derrick has been blessed to work as an artistic professional
with local and touring productions. He has been seen in productions at
Houston’s Ensemble Theatre as Bobby Green in Nacirema Society, Page
in the African American Shakespeare Company’s Cinderella, Cuttin’ Up,
Spike B. in Lotto: Experience the Dream and recently in the Atlanta Black
Theatre Festival’s award-winning production Emancipation. Being an actor
is the greatest gift of service given him from the inside out.
About South Dallas Cultural Center
Heather Christian (Co-Composer) is a composer/performer last seen
making scores for and performing in Mission Drift (winner of 2011 Fringe
First and Herald Angel) at the National Theater in London, for which she
was nominated for the Drama League Outstanding Performance Award.
Composing credits include Gertrude Stein’s The World Is Round (BAM,
NYC) for which her score received a 2014 Obie citation, Of Mice and Men
(The West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds), The Burnin’
(Progress Theatre) her own multi-media concert North (LaMama NYC),
Daily Life Everlasting (Norwegian Theater Acadamy, Norway), Mud (IAmA
Theater Company, Los Angeles), Learning in Lower Animals (DTW NYC),
as well as numerous compositions for short films and dance pieces
including Gregory Go Boom, which took the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance
this year. She is a long time collaborator in devised theater
and has worked and performed with many theater makers including the
TEAM, Jane Comfort Company, Mac Wellman, Big Dance Theater, Taylor
Mac, and Witness Relocation Company, of whom she is a core member.
She was recently named one of Time Out New York’s “Downtown
Innovators To Watch.” Primarily a songstress with her band Heather
Christian & the Arbornauts, she can be seen all over the world avanttorching. Her album Cabinet was released in 2012 to much
critical acclaim and she and the Arbornauts just released their sophomore
record, House/Hymn. www.heatherchristian.bandcamp.com
The South Dallas Cultural Center (SDCC) became a reality through the
efforts of key individuals in the African-American community who
encouraged the City of Dallas to develop a multi-purpose arts facility in
South Dallas. Under the leadership of City officials and Park Board
members, funds were allocated through the 1982 bond program to
construct a $1.5 million, 24,000 square-foot facility, located across from
Fair Park. In 2007, SDCC's facility received a total renovation and
expansion adding 10,000 square feet including a 120-seat black box
theater; three visual arts galleries; studios for dance; two-dimensional arts;
fiber; media arts; printmaking; and photography. The Center also has a full
service digital recording studio. Its award-winning summer program,
Summer Arts At the Center (SAAC) serves South Dallas children ages 5-17
years old. The Culture Out of School Program supported in part by Big
Thought/Thriving Minds allows SDCC to extend its reach to an additional
group of students who attend Saturday classes in music, dance, theater,
creative writing and Capoeira and Seniors.
The South Dallas Cultural Center is a division of the City of Dallas Office of
Cultural Affairs, a member of the Dallas Art Dealers Association and a
partner in the National Performance Network/Visual Artists Network.
Greta Gabriel (Administrative and Development Coordinator) was born
and raised in Philadelphia, PA where she attended Central High School,
Temple University and University of the Arts. She holds both a BA in
American Studies with a concentration in Ethnic Studies from University
of California, Santa Cruz, and MA in Performance Studies from NYU’s
Tisch School of the Arts. Greta’s research focus is on visual
representations of minstrelsy in early American advertising and greeting
cards. In addition to serving as PT’s Administrative and Development
Coordinator, she is a jeweler, writer, visual artist and amateur archivist.
Daniel Hanchett (Stage Manager) is a native of Houston, TX. He
is currently pursuing his BA in Theatre at Prairie View A&M
University (PVAMU). In his time at PVAMU he has been an active officer of
the Charles Gilpin Players, stage managing and assistant producing
several productions which include Black Nativity: Symbols of Our Souls,
Jelly’s Last Jam and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He currently serves as
a stage manager for the University Interscholastic League (UIL) theatre
contest giving service to K-12 theatre troupes throughout the Houston
area. While at PVAMU, he has also directed Black Love Song #1, The
Freshman Orientation Show and the 2014 New Faces production. Daniel is
excited to bring his background in theatre management to the service of
Progress Theatre!
Tiana Kaye Johnson (May Bee, Boo) is a native of Dallas, TX. She
is currently pursuing her MFA in Acting from Southern Methodist
University (SMU). Her recent credits include SMU: Look Homeward, Angel
(Eliza Gant) and Dallas Theatre Center: The Book Club Play (Lily). Tiana
received her BA in Theatre from Prairie View A&M University where she
was seen in Once on This Island (Madame Armand/Andrea/Storyteller), To
Be Young, Gifted and Black (Lorraine Hansberry) and Jelly’s Last Jam
(Anita). While at PVAMU, she also directed Ntozake Shange’s Spell #7 and
choreographed the 2011 and 2012 New Faces productions. She holds the
title of Miss South Dallas, enjoys serving the community and
inspiring social change through the arts.
Rebekah Stevens (May Belle, Broadcast, Misses/Community Engagement
& Development Associate) grew up in Austin, TX and received her BA
in Musical Theater from the University of Northern Colorado. She has
been working regionally in Houston since 2010 and recent credits include
Alley Theatre: Elephant Man, Death of a Salesman (Letta), Ether Dome
(world premiere), The Seagull, A Christmas Carol; Stages Rep: Next to
Normal (Natalie, regional premiere), Life Could be a Dream (Lois);
Theatre LaB Houston: reasons to be pretty (Carly), The Little Dog
Laughed (Ellen) and Horse Head Theatre: Essential Self Defense. Being
given the opportunity to join the Progress Theatre ensemble in 2013 has
been life changing and the best blessing.
Cristal Chanelle Truscott (Playwright & Director/Honey, Royalle) is
a playwright, director, ensemble artist, scholar, educator,
dialogue facilitator and founder of Progress Theatre (PT). She is a
Houston, TX native and holds a BFA in Theatre and Africana Studies from
NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts where she studied in the Experimental
Theatre Wing. She completed MA and PhD degrees from
NYU’s Department of Performance Studies with a research focus on
representations of spiritual diversity in African American Theatre before
1950. As an artist Cristal creates “Neo-Spirituals,” her term for the
a’capella musicals she crafts from the legacies and contemporary
experiences of African Americans. Her work includes PEACHES (published
in the TCG anthology Plays From the Boom Box Galaxy), ‘MEMBUH and
The Burnin’. She is a recipient of NEFA’s National Theatre Project grant,
multiple NPN Creation Fund grants and the 2014 Doris Duke Impact Artist
Award. Cristal is Assistant Professor and Interim Department Head of
Music & Theatre at Prairie View A&M University where she
teaches “SoulWork: Emotional Availability,” the acting method she
developed based on African American performance traditions and
aesthetics.
Carlton Turner (BandMan, Timer, Buck) is Executive Director
of AlternateROOTS and co-founder/artistic director of the group
M.U.G.A.B.E.E. (Men Under Guidance Acting Before Early Extinction), and
works with Mondo Bizarro on Race Peace, a multi-year dialogue on the
debilitating effects of racism His written works have appeared in literary
journals Black Magnolias, Bridge Conversations, Up from the ROOTS
Journal and many others. He has co-written two plays; Steal Away and
Batteries in the Killing Machine, which premiered at the National Black
Theatre Festival. In 2011 Carlton was awarded the M. Edgar Rosenblum
award for outstanding contribution to Ensemble Theater by Irondale
Ensemble Project in Brooklyn, NY. In 2013 Carlton was named to the
Kennedy Center Honors Artist Advisory Board alongside Debbie Allen,
Maria De Leon, and Ping Chong. M.U.G.A.B.E.E. has been named a 2015