Iman Aoun: Breaking Down Walls &Cultivating Hope Through Theatre

October 1, 2020 by Leave a Comment

For over thirty-five years, Iman Aoun, a theatre-maker from Palestine has dedicated herself to advancing her mission of “breaking down walls” that exist as both physical and psychological phenomena by “cultivating hope [and creating] beauty and change” through her art.  Refusing to compromise her commitment to stripping both visible and invisible walls, Iman’s work has become a source of healing not only for her Palestinian communities, but also global populations.

Iman 2020

Iman Aoun (Actress, Director, Producer) began her career in 1984 with the internationally renowned Palestinian Theatre Company El-Hakawati. In 1991 she co-founded ASHTAR Theatre and serves as Artistic Director . Aoun holds a Bachelor Degree in Social Studies and a Diploma in Psychodrama and has written and published many theatre studies; devised many plays; and directed nationally and internationally. She is a recognized international trainer of the Theatre of the Oppressed technique, an Award winning actress and director for the stage in more than 60 productions, and has appeared in national TV series and international movies. Aoun has received numerous commendations for her work from different countries, international organizations and festivals, and has served as a Panelist for various world congresses and international conferences.

Among her most notable global projects is The Gaza Monologues.

Please visit the link below to become a patron of ASHTAR Theatre:  contributions could be as little as 5$ a month. Your support grants our continuation https://www.patreon.com/ashtartheatre

Global Giving at https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/ashtar-online-performances/photos/?fbclid=IwAR0-ihQ-TXfHKZZPNd16vTocB-eyCve4lY97WdX1BfdMkwwC3o7Glynh_fw#menu

iman@ashtar-theatre.org

https://www.facebook.com/iman.aoun.18

March Hare Media + Wheatsheaf Studio Productions marchharemedia.com

“Keep The Light On For Me” vocals, music and lyrics by Yuri Turchyn yuriturchyn.com

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Valerie David: The Pink Hulk, a One-Woman Warrior’s survival story from cancer

June 24, 2020 by 4 Comments

 

Put on your Super Hero Cape when you listen to Valerie David’s podcast: The Pink Hulk, a One-Woman Warrior’s survival story from cancer. But her show is NOT just about cancer; it is about conquering our fears, our anxieties, our despair during the pandemic and removing our metaphorical masks to voice the racial injustices of Black Lives Matter.

 

Valerie David - Headshot - pc David Perlman Photography

Photo Credit David Perlman Photography

 

Valerie David is the writer and performer of the award-winning, critically acclaimed The Pink Hulk: One Woman’s Journey to Find the Superhero Within, which chronicles her journey to become a three-time cancer survivor with a combination of humor and drama to inspire and empower her audiences.

Valerie is also an improviser, published writer, editor and motivational speaker. A graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts-Manhattan Campus and James Madison University, her credits include many productions such as the Off-Broadway musical A Stoop on Orchard Street, Rumors and Claudia Shear’s Blown Sideways Through Life. Films: How I Became that Jewish Guy and Bridges and Tunnels. Memberships: Dramatists Guild, TRU, League of Professional Theatre Women, AEA and SAG-AFTRA. With more than 20 years of experience as a writer and an editor, she also teaches improv and writing classes across the country and worldwide. Valerie is currently developing her new solo show Baggage from BaghDAD about her father and his family fleeing Iraq in 1941 from religious persecution—and how their survival shaped who she is today.

Upcoming Pink Hulk virtual performance: Excerpts with a special talkback in the Reykjavik Fringe Festival, Monday, July 6, 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm (Iceland time 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm)

Broadway World Play Review of The Pink Hulk:
https://www.broadwayworld.com/off-off-broadway/article/BWW-Review-Living-Life-to-the-Fullest-with-Valerie-Davids-THE-PINK-HULK-20191013

Valerie’s article in Broadway World regarding the coronavirus:
https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/BWW-Feature-A-Three-Time-Cancer-Survivors-Inspirational-Perspective-on-the-Coronavirus-by-Performer-Valerie-David-20200417

Website: https://pinkhulkplay.com/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pinkhulkplay/

Twitter: @pinkhulkplay

IG: @pinkhulkplay

 

Filed Under: Arts Advocacy, Featured News, First Online with Fran, Interviews, League of Professional Theatre Women, Playwriting, Podcasts, Resources, YouTube Video Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Aizzah Fatima airing her “Dirty Paki Lingerie”

June 3, 2020 by Leave a Comment

 

So, what’s a young Muslim woman born in Saudi Arabia, raised as a US citizen in Mississippi, only to defy all the odds by moving to NYC to become a one-woman sensation in her highly- acclaimed show Dirty Paki Lingerie? Listen in to her airing an authentic assessment of how women, women of color, Muslim women break all the boundaries of what it means to be an American today.

AizzahFatima-097

 

Aizzah is an actress and writer from New York City by way of Mississippi. After training as a Microbiologist and working as an ads engineer at Google, she traded in her Google perks for the arts, and hasn’t looked back.

 

Dirty Paki Lingerie will stream on Facebook and YouTube through the Family Festival: Galactic Women on June 6, 2020.

Aizzah Fatima has been featured on NPR, The Guardian, Women’s Hour (BBC), The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, The New York Times, and The Huffington Post. Her comedy one woman play ‘Dirty Paki Lingerie’ has toured in the UK, Italy, Canada, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She co-produced the feature film ‘Horror Time’ with James Franco, and is currently in post production on her feature film American.ish. She wrote and starred in short films Off Duty, Doff Thy Name, and Stuff opposite Annette O’Tolle. TV acting credits include High Maintenance (HBO), The Good Wife (CBD), The Code (CBS), Mr. Robot (USA Network), Patrice O’Neal’s Guide to White People (Comedy Central pilot), and Matae Jaan (HUM TV, Pakistan). She is currently developing a comedy TV pilot titled ‘Muslim Girls DTF: Discuss Their Faith’ based on the webseries of the same name.

Here is a link to a short Dirty Paki Lingerie promo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z3gc7fMqY4

IG/Twitter:  @AizzahFatima

#MPAC   #Muslimartists   #DirtyPakiLingerie

 

 

 

Filed Under: Arts Advocacy, Educational Theater, Featured News, Interviews, League of Professional Theatre Women, Playwriting, Podcasts, Resources Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Calamari Sisters: A Recipe for Coping with the Coronavirus

May 19, 2020 by Leave a Comment

Feeling trapped during the COVID-19 self-quarantine? Here’s a pair of Italian Sisters, Delphine and Carmela, cooking up concoctions that will soothe your soul. Listen to their hilarious spin of how The Arts (and food) can cure what ails ya! 

The Calamari Sisters bill themselves as the only all-singing, all-dancing, all-cooking cooking show around.  Delphine & Carmela Calamari are two plus size Italian sisters from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn that began touring the country in 2009 with their stage shows.  Their irreverent comedy and outrageous kitchen antics have had people in stitches from California to Florida to Chicago to New York for the past decade.  They are currently in lockdown together and are looking forward to being with a live audience again.

Adopt a Nurse

Adopt A Nurse Campaign: Click on the link

Venmo:  @Delphine-Calamari
Paypal:  Email us at CalamariCookware@gmail.com telling us how many nurses you want to “adopt” and we’ll send you a PayPal request using that email address.

 

Facebook

Instagram:  @thecalamarisisters
 
 
First Online With Fran’s There’s No Place Like Art podcasts are produced by
March Hare Media + Wheatsheaf Studio Productions marchharemedia.com
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Raising awareness of our civic responsibility: KILL SWITCH

October 28, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Raising awareness of our civic responsibility is a mission of The Arts.

Jaclyn S. Powell’s prescient screenplay KILL SWITCH is a story about a well-liked, but self-absorbed and politically ambivalent Manhattan doctor who becomes sucked into the politics of money when he discovers he’s unwittingly the heart of a government conspiracy to control health care costs – and they’re playing for keeps. It’s a cautionary tale of what happens when we abdicate our civic duty to participate in the political process. Please attend a staged reading Wednesday. October 30th 6 pm at The Poets House. RSVP www.francesmcgarry.com
#killswitchthemovie

The lead roles will be played by Joe Feldman-Barros, Dominique Nieves, Frances McGarry, Richard Jordan, Jillie Simon, Richard L. Smith and Susan Lynskey. Directed by Carol Dorn

The New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) New Works Lab was formed to give writers helpful critiques for their full length screenplays, plays, shorts and web series. The 4th Annual New Works Lab Showcase will feature scenes from Chasing the Dream by Corrine Frances-Pijuan, Kill Switch by Jaclyn S. Powell and Koko and Friends: Born to Play- Destined to Win! by Denise West.

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