In WET: A DACAmented Journey, Alex Alpharaoh tells his true, real life story of what it means to be an American in every sense of the word except one: on paper. As a writer, performer, poet, activist, director, producer, and teacher based in Los Angeles, Alpharaoh is able to capture the imagination of audiences and provoke meaningful discussions in a variety of mediums. His ability to convey a story through the written word—and…
Jeanna Shepard Photography Over the weekend of August 19th and 20th, ArtsEmerson hosted a celebratory and successful summer fundraiser on Martha’s Vineyard in support of the Gaining Ground Fund. The weekend revolved around power couple entrepreneur Sheila Johnson and The Honorable William Newman performing a reading of Bill and Sheila: A Love Story– written by playwright Daniel Beaty, and based on the remarkable true story of the couple’s relationship. The Gaining Ground Fund elevates and encourages…
“It lit a fire in me. I had no idea just how Draconian, and racially biased, and how people are profitting from people being behind bars. So I took this information back to my class and started incorporating it into the poetry as best as I could.” – Liza Jessie Peterson on first learning about the term ‘Prison Industrial Complex’ As a playwright, actor, activist, and educator, Liza Jessie Peterson’s ability to create performance…
Immigration policy in the United States has always been on the lips of politicians, whether it’s pushing for reform or striking out programs. Especially in our current political climate, the information regarding immigration has saturated various media outlets, each with conflicting messaging and nearly incomprehensible legalese. This fall, ArtsEmerson is honored to welcome Alex Alpharaoh to our stage with WET: A DACAmented Journey, where Alpharaoh has created a theatrical space to detail his own experience…
What would it be like to work on a show for almost two decades before finally performing it? That is exactly what writer and performer Liza Jessie Peterson did for her show The Peculiar Patriot. This one-woman story follows Peterson’s character, Betsy LaQuanda Ross, who spends her time visiting and unearthing the secrets of penitentiaries in the United States. Peterson is bringing her piece to ArtsEmerson this October, however this show was initially conceptualized in 2003…
