Whitewashed: In the (Neighbor) 'Hood
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"We are creating an original piece of theater that explores and articulates the experiences we have as humans, the struggles and hardships we endure, and our universal search for strength, hope and transcendence in overcoming those struggles," said Brian, chairwoman of visual and performing arts. "Gun violence, violence prevention, childhood trauma, memory, dreams and empowerment are all motifs we will explore."
Quinnipiac students wrote the script with youths from the New Haven Family Alliance's Juvenile Review Board. "Whitewashed" is a multimedia production with music, dance, video and theatrical scenes.
"We're exploring what unites us as human beings, even when our backgrounds and experiences are different," Brian said. "The New Haven Family Alliance has a gun violence and trauma prevention program. This project is inspired by the same concern which inspired the original 'Whitewashed' - the desire to find a way to heal the divides which lead to racially, ethnically and economically motivated prejudice, insensitivity and violence, both on-campus and in the Greater New Haven community."
Love's Labour's Lost
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"Love's Labour's Lost" is about the King of Navarre and his three companions taking a public oath to study together and renounce women for three years. Their honor is then tested by the arrival of the princess of France and her three lovely companions. The men discover love at first sight followed by their entertaining but hopeless efforts to disguise their feelings.
The Girls Next Door
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"The Girls Next Door" is the women's version of the play "The Boys Next Door" written by Tom Griffin. Set in a group home in New England, four mentally-challenged women live under the supervision of an earnest but burned-out young social worker. The play offers vignettes from their daily lives, where little things can become poignant, funny and memorable.
Professional actress Mary Vreeland, who is deaf, directed. She performed in "Children of Lesser God" on Broadway and on a national tour. She also appeared in the CBS television movie "Have You Tried Talking to Patty?" and starred in "Medea," performed by Theater for Community in February at Long Wharf.
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Theater for Community presented the original play "Whitewashed: The Rough Draft" April 17 to 20, 2008, at the Long Wharf Theatre, Stage II, in New Haven.
"Whitewashed" is a multimedia production with documentary videos, images, theatrical scenes and monologues. "We'll explore why, as human beings, we seem hardwired to focus on our differences rather than our commonalities," said Crystal Brian, chair of the visual and performing arts department and director of the play.
"We'll examine prejudice, privilege, community and diversity from different perspectives by conducting interviews with people in the Quinnipiac and New Haven communities and examining our own experiences, ideas and feelings," Brian said.
Students from the department of theater and the School of Communications, along with communications professor Rebecca Abbott, created the multimedia play with help from West Haven Veterans Affairs, the New Haven police department, the New Haven homeless shelter Columbus House and other groups in New Haven.
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Written by Euripides, "Medea" is an ancient Greek tragedy of jealousy and revenge by a woman, Medea, betrayed by her husband after he abandons her to marry the beautiful young daughter of Creon, King of Corinth.
Mary Vreeland starred in the title role with acting professionals James Murphy and PeggyRae Johnson and Quinnipiac students. Vreeland, who is deaf, incorporated sign language into the play as an aspect of the cultural clashes between deaf and hearing cultures.
Vreeland performed in "Children of Lesser God" on Broadway and on a national tour. She also appeared in the CBS television movie "Have You Tried Talking to Patty?" She has a master of fine arts degree from Virginia Commonwealth University.