MISS YOU LIKE HOME Community Events Announced At Olney Theatre Center

Miss You Like Home is a free, all-day open house on Saturday, February 1 from 10:30 am - 6:00 pm, celebrating Olney Theatre's production of Miss You Like Hell, with events centered on what it means to be at home in America today. Through story circles, art workshops, panels, and discussions, as well as theatre and dance performances featuring amazing local Latinx artists, we'll celebrate and amplify the diverse perspectives and unique stories of home in our community.

Says Rebecca Dzida, Community Engagement Manager, "This began as an urge to organize a civic engagement event, and has grown into a full day of activities. When we reached out to artists, explaining our idea, all of them enthusiastically said yes. I am so pleased Olney Theatre Center gets to host such an event with incredible local artists from the Latinx community as well as provide a platform for people to share their own stories of home. Whoever you are or wherever you come from, you are welcome here."

All events are free, however reservations are encouraged and can be made at olneytheatre.org/home

Welcome featuring La Gloria de la Danza

10:30am-11:20am in the Historic

Olney Theatre Center kicks off the day with special guest La Gloria de la Danza, a children's and adult dance group based in the Wheaton area that performs cultural and folk dances from Central America. La Gloria de la Danza has performed at Montgomery County's Hispanic Heritage Festival as well as the Nicaraguan Embassy in Washington, DC.

Staged reading and discussion of Óyeme, the Beautiful

11:30am-12:50pm in the Mainstage

Laura and Valentina are teenagers just trying to make it through another day in middle school. But, unlike many of their peers, they are refugees from Central America who have fled brutal violence in their home countries to find shelter and pursue their dreams in the United States. Step inside their shoes, hear their stories, see their struggle, and feel their strength as we move through their day. Óyeme, the beautiful brings to light the undaunted courage and beautiful spirit that fuels these young people and teaches us the power of friendship, family, and hope. Written by Miriam Gonzales and commissioned by Imagination Stage in Bethesda, Óyeme, the Beautiful is inspired by the stories of real students living in the Greater Washington, DC area. A discussion will follow the reading with the playwright Miriam Gonzales and Imagination Stage's Director of Education & Community Programs Joanne Seelig Lamparter.

A conversation with artists Muriel Hasbun, Nicoletta de la Brown, and Beatriz Del Omo-Fiddleman

1:00pm-1:50pm in the Historic

Join us in a conversation about what it means to find your home with amazing local artists. Muriel Hasbun is a visual artist and educator who focuses on issues of cultural identity and memory. Nicoletta de la Brown is a Baltimore-based interdisciplinary performance artist, speaker, mother, and self-love champion. She is a Black Latinx, first-generation Panamanian born in the US and comes from a long line of healers.. Beatriz del Omo-Fiddleman is a graphic and book artist born and raised in Mexico City. She currently works as a substitute teacher in Montgomery County Public Schools and spent two years working with ESOL students at Sherwood High School to create illustrated books inspired by their personal stories.

"Undocumented and Unafraid," a panel with Casa de Maryland

2:00pm-2:50pm in the Historic

Members of the undocumented community are often the hidden voices missing in our national conversation about immigration, but Olney Theatre Center, in partnership with the nonprofit Casa de Maryland, gives these incredible individuals a platform to share their experiences because no human is illegal, and no one should be afraid to tell their story.

The barquitos de papel collective archive workshop, Paper boats with Muriel Hasbun

3:00pm-4:00pm in the Actors' Hall (2nd floor), limited capacity

Artist and educator Muriel Hasbun will lead a family history workshop. Participants are invited to bring copies of documents and family photos to add their stories to the barquitos de papel collective archive. Hasbun has been gathering migration stories from all over the world since 2006 and invites you to contribute a paper boat with your story as well. In the workshop, we are encouraged to remember, to (re)discover and to claim our individual stories, inscribing them in a communal space. Our barquitos stand on their own as documents of our diverse journeys. They highlight our individuality while gesturing that together, we may find our belonging.

Ipseity, a hip-hop fusion dance performance by Cristina Camacho

4:00pm-4:45pm in the Historic

Cristina Camacho is an educator, filmmaker, choreographer, and dancer who grew up in Montgomery County, MD. She is now a professional dancer based out of New York City. She's performed internationally with Culture Shock DC, featured on the VMA Awards on TV, and can be seen in the upcoming West Side Story motion picture adaptation by Steven Spielberg. Her new piece Ipseity uses hip-hop and modern dance to explore the relationship between identity, culture, and belonging in a world dictated by boundaries.

StorySlam

5:00pm-6:00pm in the Mainstage

To close out the day, participate in our first ever StorySlam! Prepare a 3-5 minute story about home, whatever that means to you. Moving into a new house. Navigating a new country, missing an old one. Visiting some place that used to be home. What people, food, sights, and memories make you feel at home? Come prepared to listen, support, and share.

Any changes to the above schedule will be posted at olneytheatre.org/home

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