Noise Now Announces Fall 2019 Programming

A Noise Within (ANW), California's acclaimed classic repertory theatre company, is proud to announce Noise Now's fall 2019 slate of programming. Launched in February 2019, Noise Now is a cultural initiative by A Noise Within aimed at sharing artistic resources and being radically welcoming of underrepresented populations, communities of color, young people, and anyone who may not be equitably represented in theatre.

Noise Now will further expand its reach for fall 2019 by partnering with nine Los Angeles organizations for eight events beginning this month through the end of December: Pasadena Photography Arts, ONE Archives Foundation, MKM Bollystars Dance Company, Beating of Wings: An Artist Collective, Coin & Ghost Theatre Company, Latino Theater Company, Unbound Productions, Pasadena Mental Health Advisory Committee, and Project Sister Family Services. Six of the organizations Noise Now will partner with are cultural arts organizations.

"A Noise Within's new cultural initiative has had an exciting six months since its inception," said Noise Now curator and ANW's Director of Cultural Programming Jonathan Muñoz-Proulx. "Noise Now is attracting new audience members from the greater Los Angeles community thanks to the diverse programming being offered."

Eighty-four percent of patrons who have attended Noise Now programming have never been to A Noise Within before. Additionally, Noise Now audiences generally include 22% more people of color and 12% more people under the age of 30.

In addition to curating its own programming, Noise Now will enhance the experience of A Noise Within's productions beyond the main stage. Noise Now will activate non-traditional or underutilized spaces throughout ANW's campus to present art exhibitions, music, staged readings, and dance performances that will expand the ever-evolving definition of what "classic" stories are.

To celebrate the opening of A Noise Within's first August Wilson play, Noise Now has commissioned Los Angeles photographer Ibarionex Perello to create a photography exhibition, inspired by Wilson's Gem of the Ocean, that explores the history of slavery and institutional racism. Titled The Three-Fifths Project, Perello's work reflects the perpetual sense of tension, anxiety, and insecurity faced by men and women of color, while also evoking a sense of bloodline and legacy. The title is derived from the Three-Fifths Compromise in the United States Constitution, a conceit that not only claimed that blacks were less than human, but that their value was measured by how they benefited the wealth, power, and prosperity of white males. Set 40 years after slavery has been abolished in America, Gem of the Ocean's characters represent the first generation of free African Americans who begin to navigate a country filled with racism and inequalities. Presented with Pasadena Photography Arts, The Three-Fifths Project will be on display through the run of Gem of the Ocean, from Sept. 28 through Nov. 16.

Jonathan Muñoz-Proulx said, "We're thrilled to be opening our doors and expanding our identity to collaborate with some of Los Angeles' most exciting artists. A Noise Within's campus has never been so active - with main stage performances downstairs, and Noise Now performances upstairs and outside, our campus is buzzing with creative energy."

A Noise Now reading series playwright, Inda Craig-Galván, was recently awarded $25,000 for her outstanding work in playwrighting. Craig-Galván, who authored the tragicomic play Black Super Hero Magic Mama that world-premiered at The Geffen Playhouse, was named the 2019 recipient of the prestigious Kesselring Prize. She is also the writer of A Hit Dog Will Holler, a staged reading that was presented by Noise Now with Griot Theatre in August. Inda Craig-Galván has been commissioned by Playwrights' Arena to write adaptations of Spanish Golden Age plays for Noise Now's fall 2020 Festival of Hispanic Classical Theater, "LA Escena," in partnership with UCLA and Diversifying the Classics.

"This season has been a year in the making and is filled with many 'firsts' for A Noise Within. With nine partner organizations, five different languages, dance, theatre, opera, visual art, and more, we're excited to be shaking up what it means to be a 'classic' theatre company. We're committed to nurturing the future classics, and to ensuring that theatre is a space for all voices, languages, and communities," concluded Muñoz-Proulx.

Noise Now events are designed to be accessible to all audiences. Tickets for Noise Now events are "choose your price" and can be reserved at anoisewithin.org/noisenow. For more information on Noise Now or cultural partnerships with ANW, please contact Jonathan Muñoz-Proulx, Director of Cultural Programming, at jmunozproulx@anoisewithin.org or by calling 626-356-3117.

Noise Now's Fall 2019 Programming
The Three Fifths Project • Sept. 28 - Nov. 16
An exhibition by photographer Ibarionex Perello
Presented with Pasadena Photography Arts

Dear One: Love & Longing in Mid-Century America • Oct. 13 at 1:30 p.m.
A staged reading by Josh Irving Gershick
Co-sponsored by ONE Archives Foundation

Diwali Block Party • Oct. 26 at 4:30 p.m.
A Festival of Lights Celebration
Presented with MKM Bollystars Dance Company

A Sad Tale's Best For Winter • A Feminist Adaptation of Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale • Nov. 17 at 6:30 p.m.
A staged reading by Anna Miles
Presented with Beating of Wings: An Artist Collective

Room By The Sea • Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m.
A staged reading by John Guerra
Presented with Coin & Ghost Theatre Company

Latina Christmas Special: An American Comedy of Latina Proportions • Dec. 9 at 7:30 p.m.
Presented with Latino Theater Company

Wicked Lit • Dec. 15 at 6:30 p.m.
A staged reading by Roxie Perkins
Presented with Unbound Productions

Ballad of Haint Blue • Dec. 22 at 6:30 p.m.
A staged reading by Roxie Perkins
Presented with Pasadena Mental Health Advisory Committee & Project Sister Family Services

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