Our Own Voice Theatre Troupe (Photo: Courtesy OOV)
What happens in the beehive stays in the beehive.
In this case, though, we aren’t talking about a hive run by bees. We’re talking about a hive run by Our Own Voice Theatre Troupe (OOV). This “hive” is a form of paratheatre, where the audience directly participates in the performance … well, if you could even call it a “performance.” “Experience” or “meeting” might be a better word.
“It’s been hard to describe to people,” says Sarah Rushakoff, who along with OOV founding director Bill Baker has organized the hive. “We don’t know what it’ll be until everyone arrives and kind of makes it what it will be. We’re providing different materials for people; we are providing the space and a welcoming environment. If they want to write, they can write. If someone has something with movement, they can move. And whatever collaboration, whatever creativity happens, that’s that night. That’s the hive.”
The concept comes from Jerzy Grotowski’s 1970s paratheatrical movement. Grotowski had grown tired of traditional theater practices and wanted to break the barrier between the actor and the audience by inviting the audience to participate in the creative process, rather than passively consuming someone else’s finished work.
“The concept of a spect-actor is definitely going to be in play, where the spectator is also an actor,” says Rushakoff. “But we’re not looking for necessarily a performance; we just want to observe each other’s creativity, and we will be an ‘us.’ It won’t be ‘us,’ the theater company, and ‘you,’ the spectators. We’ll be an ‘us’ because we’re all in the space breathing the same air.
“Since I’ve been with the company, this is going to be the biggest leap of faith that we’re taking,” Rushakoff continues. “It’s such a mindfuck to think of inviting people to a space where no one knows what’s going to happen.”
Put simply, the hive will be a form of play, with participants and OOV members arriving with no expectations or preparations, just an open mind. In that way, OOV, whose mission is to support mental health awareness, hopes the hive will be freeing and an opportunity for creative expression. “We always hope that our events are at least a little therapeutic,” Rushakoff says. “That would the best compliment — to have someone walk away considering what they just experienced as therapeutic.”
OOV’s hive will commence on Friday, August 25th, and Saturday, August 26th. No two hives will be the same. Tickets are pay-what-you-can and can be purchased at our-own-voice.square.site or at the door.
“As always, with any of our performances, especially the pay-what-you-can, if you can’t [pay], then you come in anyway ’cause we would miss out on so much if we didn’t let people come who wanted to participate,” Rushakoff adds. “We’re hoping to meet some new people who want to play with us and be a part of the hive.”
Tommy Kha's “Eye is Another” at Memphis Brooks Museum of Art
As you invite spring back into your lives, we invite you to support the arts this season, for Memphis has no shortage of exhibitions, performances, and arts happenings. We also encourage you to step out of your comfort zone. Catch a performance by a cast of actors who were formerly incarcerated; try out an immersive theater experience; or maybe, if you’re brave enough, audition for a show yourself.
Black Men Missing II
Nine years ago, during a service at Miracle Temple Ministries, Larry NuTall noticed that the majority of the church’s congregation was women. The men, he noted, were missing, not just from the church but from the community and the family, and he let his imagination carry him through the different reasons as to why that might be. “I just created little scenarios,” he says. “That’s how I basically got the idea to write a play about Black men.”
The characters came easily and so did their backstories, wrapped up in crime and family issues, often the victim of their situation. By the conclusion of the play, called Black Men Missing, most of these men end up dying or incarcerated, and that bleak ending has sat with audiences for almost a decade. NuTall says that, even to this day, people ask him about what happened to the characters and their families after they last saw them on stage. So, when he was approached to bring back the show, he opted instead to create a sequel.
“Part two is basically giving the audience the ending where everything turns out great,” NuTall explains. “These guys [who were incarcerated by the end of the first part] are back out in society and what they’re doing now is being role models. … They’re trying to encourage others to be better than they were, not to be a statistic, letting them know that they don’t have to go that way.”
Though Black Men Missing II has yet to take to the stage, it’s already impacting members of the community — specifically those in the cast. Though most of them had never acted before answering the casting call NuTall posted at church and on social media, these men have lived the story he has written, stories of addiction and incarceration, stories of lacking a father figure, stories of searching for love in the wrong places.
In turn, they bring a weight to their respective characters that the playwright could never have imagined. For this cast, acting has become a source of therapy. They’re able to embody their stories with not only a sense of accountability but also sympathy for their characters and, by extension, their past selves.
“One of the guys said that this particular play basically saved his life,” NuTall says. “They are actually very emotional. To see them cry, these big guys, strong guys, to see them emotional in rehearsal, it caused my heart to just fall right into my pocket. It’s really helping them. To see them at the very beginning and to see them now, these guys embrace each other and tell them, ‘I love you, brother. I’ll see you next week.’ They didn’t do any of that at the very beginning.”
NuTall himself knows the power of performing, having been a professional dancer for the Tennessee Ballet Theater before turning to playwriting. “I remember back in the day, the Orpheum was one of the biggest spotlights for me because we did the Nutcracker there basically every year. I always said that I would love to bring my very own show back to the Orpheum. And my dream is a reality now.”
Black Men Missing II is a Larry NuTall production and will be performed at the Orpheum Theatre, on March 25th, 7 p.m.
In a Dark Wood
For Julia Hinson and Aliza Moran, writing a script together comes just as easily as finishing each other’s sentences. “I think we have a very similar language,” says Moran. “I feel like it’s something that’s developed through our time working together. She’s one of my best friends, and we are around each other all the time. … We’ve known each other for 20 years.”
For their latest project, titled In a Dark Wood, the two friends, who met while at the University of Memphis, found inspiration in Southern lore. The show is about two travelers who, after an unexplainable event, find refuge in a diner, where patrons and staff share their own experiences with the supernatural. “We have taken real experiences we read about and just put them in the mouths of our character basically,” Hinson says.
“We also knew it was gonna be audio immersive,” she continues, “meaning that the people will go into the theater, they’ll put headphones on, and then we will put them in darkness. So the play happens in their minds, basically.”
As such, the two knew that scripting this experimental play would be different than scripting a traditional performance. “We’re always thinking of the audio first, so as we’re writing it, if it’s a storm, what kind of storm? And then to even think through sounds that you wouldn’t normally think about — like driving in a car, the sound of the keys, the sound of the engine.”
They plan to record the cast with a binaural microphone. “It’s shaped like the human ear,” Hinson explains. “And so it picks up sound just like the human ear would.”
“So whatever character’s perspective we’re writing, you’re hearing it from their perspective, which is pretty neat,” adds Moran, and that concept focusing on character perspective drove their process. “We started with the characters first and then moved from there. … We ask questions, which is the part of the devising process that I learned, and it’s like asking questions from these characters like you were trying to get to know somebody. So, say, what is their earliest memory? What do they want? What did they want to be when they were young? And then just keep adding and adding, so that when we got to the writing process, we knew these characters so well that we could trust each other with scripting.”
Through this collaborative process, Moran continues, “No one part of the play belongs to one person,” and the collaboration doesn’t end in the scripting. For instance, Hinson says, “We’ll tell the actors that if something doesn’t quite fit in their mouth, we’ll change it to make it flow out of their mouth. So we hope to be collaborative with them as well.”
Even the audience will be a part of this collaboration, Hinson says. “It’s a communal experience.” Without an audience, the show’s purpose would cease to exist, and in that way, the show belongs to the audience, too. In a Dark Wood, in particular,promises to be intimate, with the audience limited to 20 people. “When we experience things together [through theater], I think it bonds us to people in a way that other things don’t,” Hinson says. “Theater’s also a mirror to society. And while our show is mostly creepy fun — we’re not making any political statements necessarily — we’re looking to give people a different kind of experience, but there’s value in that.”
“It is a way to step out of our general lives,” Moran adds, “have the experience with others, maybe be moved by it. You never know.”
In a Dark Wood is a LoneTree Live production and will be showing at Evergreen Theatre at select times on March 31st-April 9th; lonetreelive.com.
Mora Play rehearsals in 2020 (Photo: Courtesy Our Own Voice | Facebook)
Mora Play
After eight years of working on their play, Sarah Rushakoff was finally ready to share it with the public. Rehearsals began in early 2020 with the theater group Our Own Voice (OOV) and soon came to a crashing halt at the onset of the pandemic. Now, after another three years of waiting, Rushakoff’s Mora Play will at last make its debut on the TheatreWorks stage as OOV’s first production since 2020.
The play takes inspiration from medieval morality plays, which were religious in nature and largely allegorical with a protagonist who must choose between good and evil for the sake of their salvation. For Mora Play, Rushakoff says, “I’m making it the humanist version, with the idea that people can do good without the promise of a reward and avoid doing evil without the threat of punishment, which is opposite of the original morality plays.
“It just always nagged at me that some people who are very religious make it sound very difficult to just be good and do good things,” they continue. “And when you look at a lot of religious zealots today and what they say, a lot of it is not what you would call moral goals. It’s capitalism, greed, hate, dishonesty, willful ignorance. It turns people against each other, instead of bringing them together. That’s why I thought that this [play] was a version that maybe we need today, instead of fire and brimstone.”
But Rushakoff, a self-declared atheist, is wary of creating their own echo chamber, so they hope to get feedback from their fellow OOV members, who range in religious affiliations. They’ve also recruited Bill Baker, the founding director of the company, as a co-director. “I definitely wanted different viewpoints. I wanted to be challenged if something in the script didn’t sit well with someone.”
After three years in limbo, Rushakoff does expect to revise the script. “It’ll probably never be done in my mind,” they say. “But there’s so much stuff that’s happened since I first said I was done writing it. There’s so much more to say. … But it’s gonna be a collaborative process.”
After all, that collaborative and egalitarian energy is what initially drew Rushakoff to OOV. “If you’ve ever done a show with us, you’re a company member,” they say. “Period. Like forever. We welcome everyone and for a lot of people, we’re the first play they’ve ever been in. … Auditions are more like, ‘Just show up and if you like what we’re doing and we like what you’re doing, then you’re in.’” (For those interested, auditions are April 1st, 2nd, and 8th.)
Audience participation is also important for OOV performances, where there’s never a fourth wall. “When the performers acknowledge the audience and when we invite them to perform with us,” Rushakoff says, “it deepens the connection with the audience and makes them feel like a part of the performance.”
Mora Play, for its part, hints at that desire for connection. “We wanted to redefine the idea of sin,” Rushakoff says. “We boiled it down to the idea that it’s a modern sin to prevent or break a connection between people. So the flip side of that is, a good deed is building or facilitating a connection between people. That’s what we hope to do [with theater].”
Mora Play will be performed May 26th-June 11th at TheatreWorks; follow OOV on Facebook (@ourownvoicetheatretroupe).
ON DISPLAY
“Black Alchemy: Backwards/Forwards Revisited” Aaron Turner explores the depths of music through photography. TONE, through March 18
“Atmospheric Conditions” Bill Killebrew’s narrative scenic paintings. David Lusk Gallery, through April 1
“Jeanne Seagle: Of This Place”
“Jeanne Seagle: Of This Place” Drawings of landscapes surrounding Memphis with remarkable precision. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, through April 9
“Who Is That Artist?” Works by Johana Moscoso, Karla Sanchez, and Danielle Sierra, who speak to Latinx identity, intersectionality, and transcendence. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, through April 16
Johnson Uwadinma Paintings by this contemporary Nigerian artist. Urevbu Contemporary, through April 29
“Eye is Another” at Memphis Brooks Museum of Art
“Eye is Another” Photography-based installation by artist Tommy Kha. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, through May 7
“Tend To” A flora-filled group exhibition featuring works by Joel Parsons, Sarah Elizabeth Cornejo, and Verushka Dior. Urban Art Commission, through May 7
“Extending the Potential” Enameling by the late Bill Helwig and current enamel artists. Metal Museum, through May 21
“Going with the Grain” Rose Marr’s crayon drawings on wood. Hattiloo Theatre, March 9-April 6
Harmonia Rosales’ “Master Narrative”
“Master Narrative” Harmonia Rosales’ paintings weave tales of West African Yorùbà religion, Greco-Roman mythology, and Christianity. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, March 10-June 25
Carl E. Moore at Jay Etkin Gallery
“From the Studio” Carl E. Moore’s work reflects and represents the people and landscape around him. Jay Etkin Gallery, March 17-April 29
Jasmine Marie Photographer Jasmine Marie’s work exploring love, Black femme identity, and community. Beverly & Sam Ross Gallery, March 19-April 23
“The Expansive Moment” Susan Maakestad’s watercolors take banal urban landscapes and transform them into meditations on light and color. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, April 16-July 9
“Watercolors and Ceramics” Chinese-French artist Zao Wou-Ki’s lyrical watercolors and designs for ceramics. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, April 30-July 16
Doudou Mbemba Lumbu Paintings that express the artist’s observations of a failing humanity and his vision for a better world. Urevbu Contemporary, May 6-June 30
“Rich Soil at the Garden” at Memphis Botanic Garden
“Rich Soil at the Garden” Outdoor exhibition created by Kristine Mays, inspired by the movements of Alvin Ailey’s dance composition. Memphis Botanic Garden, opening in May
The Dixon Gallery & Gardens
“Dixon Blooms” Daffodils, hyacinths, and tulips! Oh my! This will be one of the Dixon’s biggest garden exhibitions yet, with 350,000 new flowering bulbs planted. Stay up to date on the status of the blooms on the Dixon’s social media. The Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Spring
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (Photo: Paul Kolnik)
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater The dancers of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater dazzle with their technical brilliance and passionate energy, bringing audiences to their feet at every performance. Orpheum Theatre, March 3-5
Spamalot A musical and comedic take on the tale of King Arthur’s quest to find the Holy Grail. Germantown Community Theatre, March 3-19
The Play That Goes Wrong A play within a play, where disaster befalls the cast and crew. Theatre Memphis, March 3-26
Step Afrika! One of the top-10 African-American dance companies in the United States comes to GPAC. Germantown Performing Arts Center, March 5
Ain’t Too Proud (Photo: Emilio Madrid)
Ain’t Too Proud The electrifying new smash-hit Broadway musical follows The Temptations’ extraordinary journey from the streets of Detroit to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Orpheum Theatre, March 7-12
Freckleface Strawberry: The Musical A show for the whole family, this musical follows Freckleface Strawberry as she tries to do anything to get rid of her freckles. The Circuit Playhouse, March 10-April 16
Lonely Planet Centered around the AIDS epidemic, this play touches on mourning and grief, kept at bay with quips and comedy. TheatreWorks, March 10-19
Marie-Stéphane Bernard: Sounds of My Life Witness the worlds of Paris, Italian opera houses, and Memphis as they collide in the lyrical language of Marie-Stéphane Bernard. Germantown Performing Arts Center, March 11
Memphis Music & Art Expo An evening of dynamic jazz by pianist Alex Bugnon, plus a performance by flutist Althea Rene. Scheidt Performing Arts Center, March 11
Dalí Quartet An Iris concert fusing classical and Latin music. Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, March 17
Ink A team of underdog reporters and an editor set out to beat the competition and change the way the world looks at news — all this, under the watchful eye of Rupert Murdoch. The Circuit Playhouse, March 24-April 16
Mozart and Electric Guitar Concerto A concert of musical dedications by Memphis Symphony Orchestra. Crosstown Theater, March 24 | Germantown United Methodist Church, March 26
School Girls; Or, African Mean Girls Play Exploring the universal similarities (and glaring differences) facing teenage girls across the globe. Hattiloo Theatre, March 24-April 16
Preacher Lawson (Photo: Courtesy EV Memphis)
Preacher Lawson Memphis-born comedian comes to GPAC. Germantown Performing Arts Center, March 25
Menopause: The Musical Four women at a lingerie sale have nothing in common but a black lace bra and memory loss, hot flashes, night sweats, not enough sex, too much sex, and more. Orpheum Theatre, March 29
Mrs. Mannerly A demanding etiquette teacher comes face-to-face with a student determined to earn a perfect score. Theatre Memphis, March 31-April 16
30 Days of Opera Opera Memphis presents a month of free, outdoor performances throughout Memphis. Various locations, April 1-30
Chicago This Broadway show brings all that jazz to Memphis. Orpheum Theatre, April 4-9
Ballet Memphis presents Cinderella. (Photo: Justin Fox Burks)
Cinderella Young and old alike will be enchanted by this timeless tale from Ballet Memphis. Orpheum Theatre, April 14-16
Jose Limón Dance Company Jose Limón Dance Company is revered throughout the world for its dramatic expression, technical mastery, and expansive yet nuanced movement. Buckman Arts Center, April 16
Brahms: A People’s Requiem Experience this exquisite, soulful journey with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, April 22-23
Heather McMahan: The Comeback Tour Your favorite high-functioning hot mess, comedian Heather McMahan is back on tour. Orpheum Theatre, April 28
Lungs A couple considers starting a family. Quark Theatre, April 28
Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich One of the greatest symphonies of the 20th century. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, May 6 | Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, May 7
Clyde’s A truck-stop sandwich shop in Reading, Pennsylvania, becomes a place of employment and redemption for the formerly incarcerated staff. The Circuit Playhouse, May 12-June 4
Sistas: The Musical After a matriarch’s death, the women in the family bond over old memories. Hattiloo Theatre, June 2-25
Mary Poppins You know her and you love her. Mary Poppins is coming to Theatre Memphis. Theatre Memphis, June 9-July 2
Jersey Boys An exciting walk down memory lane uncovers the rise and fall of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Playhouse on the Square, June 16-July 16
AROUND TOWN
Chalkfest (Photo: Courtesy Memphis Brooks Museum of Art)
Chalkfest Join local artists in transforming the Brooks Plaza into the most beautiful masterpiece with chalk. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, March 25
Tennessee Triennial: Memphis Highlight Weekend Presented by the Tennessee Triennial, the weekend will include receptions and celebratory events at select venues. Various locations, April 27-29
Spring Faire Theatre Memphis’ annual event with artists’ and artisans’ booths, food trucks, and performances throughout the day. Theatre Memphis, April 29
Brazil by Day Become immersed in the rich culture of Brazil through fine art, live music, dance performances, cuisine, and more! Crosstown Arts, May 13
