Brave Little Company announces THE BIG 'US' PROJECT

Brave Little Company announces a new initiative, THE BIG "US" PROJECT, inviting children and adults in Houston's refugee communities to lead the creation of a large-scale, public performance piece to be shared with all of Houston in March 2019. Regardless of their level of artistic experience, participants of all ages will contribute to a performance that is truly reflective of our community. THE BIG "US" PROJECT is funded in part by the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance. To learn more about the project in English, Arabic, Spanish, Chinese, or Vietnamese, please visit www.thebigUSproject.com or Brave Little Company's homepage at www.brave-little.com.

In the inaugural year of THE BIG "US" PROJECT, artist-mentors Rachel H. Dickson, Neda Khan, Troy Scheid, and Sophia Torres - four women of diverse heritage and disciplines - specifically invite Houston's refugee communities to tell stories and devise pieces that they value. The role of the four artists committed to the project will be to guide the process, help develop skills, mentor emerging artists, provide expertise when necessary, and create an opportunity for refugees and non-refugees to collaborate on art - the ultimate community-building experience.

The artist-mentors are working in partnership with Houston organizations Culture of Health - Advancing Together, the Texan-French Alliance for the Arts, Alliance for Multicultural Community Services, the Darfurian Association of Greater Houston, KIPP Connect Middle School, Catholic Charities of Galveston/Houston and other groups serving refugees.

The final performance, to be held in Houston's Gulfton neighborhood in March 2019, will feature 100 people who may be trained or untrained performers, including children and adults from the refugee and non-refugee communities, who have invested their time in the work's creation. It will include theatre, visual arts, dance, and music. While no artistic experience is required to participate, one of the project's goals is to connect with people who may have been master artists in their countries of origin, who would like to reach a wider audience in Houston.

Troy Scheid, one of the artist-mentors collaborating on the piece and the director of Brave Little Company, said, "Since we started producing plays in 2013, Brave Little Company has embraced the concept of making our 'us' bigger. It's imperative that those of us who have the privilege of being established artists learn to partner with and amplify the voices of those who have been historically excluded. THE BIG 'US' PROJECT is an opportunity to affirm our common humanity with refugee communities in Houston."

About Brave Little Company:
Brave Little Company is now entering its fifth season of creating theatre about, with, and for kids and their grown-ups. BLC is committed to reflecting Houston's diversity in our artists and in the stories we tell. By creating theatre the way kids play and emphasizing interaction between performer and audience, we empower children to create art on their own. As a Young Audiences of Houston touring company, all of our productions, residencies, and workshops are available throughout the Houston region and beyond. BLC's touring productions for 2018 - 2019 include Cenicienta by Rupert Reyes and Caroline Reck, a one-woman retelling of Cinderella through he eyes of a girl who is bullied for speaking Spanish; and Grandpa's Garden, a musical science and history class taught by characters, with music and lyrics by Rodrick Randall. Brave Little Company received a Founders' Concept Development Grant to develop Grandpa's Garden from The Children's Theatre Foundation of America in 2017.

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