Tara Leo Auchey Leads Talk After BRIGHTON'S GREEN STREET Reading at Open Stage of Harrisburg Tonight

Gentrification is a two-edged sword, and there are always winners and losers when a neighborhood - or city - is reborn. Tonight, October 25, 2014, Tara Leo Auchey of Penn Live and author of the blog, "Today's the Day, Harrisburg" will lead a discussion of where Harrisburg is headed and the pros and cons of gentrification following a staged reading of Paul Hood's new play, Brighton's Green Street at Open Stage of Harrisburg.

Set in the 1990s, Brighton's Green Street tells the story of cancer survivor Brighton Howard who vows to use his new lease on life to "take back" his Olde Uptown Harrisburg neighborhood and return it to its glory days before it was hard hit by hurricane Agnes. Little does Brighton know, but his beloved Green Street is the future site of major redevelopment and a young real estate developer named Alex Park is heading the proposal. Both Alex and Brighton want the same thing - a new start for the city they love. So why are they at loggerheads? As both men go about their lives - narrated at a distance by Brighton himself - the audience learns a lot about the two men, their conflicting dreams and our assumptions about social class, gentrification and race in America.

Brighton's Green Street was developed under the auspices of the Playwrights Alliance of Pennsylvania (PAPA), a non-profit group dedicated to the development and promotion of playwrights and their work. PAPA meets regularly at Open Stage of Harrisburg, and this staged reading is part of PAPA's outreach work. It is currently under consideration for an off-Broadway premiere at the StagePlays Theatre Company in New York.

Brighton's Green Street will be performed - one night only - at 8 p.m. on October 25 at Open Stage of Harrisburg. Tickets to the event are $10 and are available at the door. There will be no presale for this event.
Individuals who would like more information regarding this performance or PAPA should contact Marjorie Bicknell at marj@bicknellcreative.com.