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• MANDALA IN SOUTH AFRICA!
Mandala Center director, Marc Weinblatt, has been invited to lead an extended T.O. training for NGO workers in Durban, South Africa. Tentative dates are early November 2007. Stay tuned for updates…

• OTHER PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS
Some upcoming projects of the Mandala Center include:

1) Theatre of the Oppressed workshop at “Summer School for Union Organizers”, Evergreen State College Labor Center, Olympia, WA – June 28.
Cheryl Harrison facilitates a half-day T.O. workshop to open a 5-day conference for union activist women and community organizers. Organized by Nina Triffleman.

2) Diversity / Cultural Competency workshop for Service Alternatives, Seattle, WA – Aug. 27–28.
Cheryl Harrison and Marc Weinblatt facilitate a T.O. based “train the trainers” workshop to support Service Alternatives trainers to be more effective in working with their staff of youth/disability workers. Organized by Jan Strolle.

 

• “POETIC JUSTICE THEATRE ENSEMBLE” UPDATE & EVENTS
The Poetic Justice Theatre Ensemble, a community service project of the Mandala Center, has jumped off to an exciting 5th season adding several new troupe members including a musician, the spectacular (and only 19 years old!) Ezekiel Wakefield. Though some of our interactive performances are open to the public, many are oriented for specific audiences around shared concerns. If you wish to be kept informed and possibly attend any Port Townsend area performances relevant to you, please make sure we have your e-mail and specify that we put you on our “LOCAL LIST.”

One upcoming performance, open to the community-at-large, will focus on GLBTQ (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) issues including how folks outside the GLBTQ community can be more effective allies:

"Stereotype Straightjackets: Images of Gender and Sexuality"
When: Thursday, March 15th @ 7:00 PM
Where: Quimper Unitarian Fellowship, Port Townsend
Cost: Free or by donation

Previous performances this season have included:
12/4/06 “Flying or Dying” – community-wide event exploring drug and alcohol use/abuse. At the
Boiler Room, PT’s youth driven coffee house and youth center.
12/12/06 “Cracks in the Rainbow” – an invited audience event exploring divisions within the
GLBTQ community.
1/10/07 Closed performance for all teen audience -- exploring current youth issues.
For “Peer-In”, Jefferson County Health Department’s teen support group.

Others tentatively planned for the spring include events on Elder Issues at local senior residences, Disability, Youth Issues at the high school, Peer-In, the Boiler Room, plus a large event in May to network with local social service organizations as well as raise money to support Poetic Justice programming. There will be others that come up as the need arises. Poetic Justice’s mission is, in part, that of local community service so most of what we do is offered free of charge when in support of marginalized populations. Please let us know if your organization is interested in having us provide a performance / dialogue with your group.

A dedicated multi-generational team, our current members range in age from 16-78 years old. The troupe's focus is on stimulating community dialogue and inviting positive action around burning social issues. In our improvisational performances, which combine Theatre of the Oppressed and Playback Theatre techniques, audience members are not spectators but spect-actors -- invited to share their stories and ultimately invited onstage to explore solutions to their own questions and struggles.
Current Poetic Justice Theatre Ensemble members are:
Karolina Anderson
Erica Brunquist
Sheffield Edgerton
Maureen Freehill
Camille Hildebrandt
Jim Jenkins
Mickey McKinney
Daniel Nidzgorski
Ashnie Palmer
Becky Plant
Alia Stevens
Justen Till
Zeke Wakefield (musician)
Marc Weinblatt
Kirsten Wright

 

• PTO CONFERENCE
The 13th annual “Pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed” (PTO) Conference, expanding on theory and applications of the works of Paulo Freire and Augusto Boal, will be held May 31 – June 3, 2007 in Minneapolis, MN. Pre-conference workshops, led by Boal and others, start on May 28th. During the conference, Marc Weinblatt will lead “Nightmare Joker Moments: Advanced T.O. Facilitation” -- a highly participatory T.O. session inviting dialogue as well as practical skills in facilitating challenging situations. For details on the conference including registration, go to: http://www.ptoweb.org