THE ART OF FACING FEAR Comes to the US With All-New American Cast

What happens when an experimental theatre group known for innovative use of technology finds themselves in a worldwide pandemic limiting their ability to work with each other and audiences in person? They develop a production designed specifically to push the boundaries of how we connect with digital theatre, and then they build a new community of International Artists.

The Art of Facing Fear, a one-hour virtual play, is a wildly surreal and cathartic experience inspired by our current world situation. In a possible not-too-distant dystopian future, with the quarantine at 5,555 days, a diverse ensemble of individuals deal with the stress and fear of being confined to home during this time of pandemic. The main themes of the performance are the effects of the Corona virus on everyday lives, as well as an encroaching authoritarianism and intolerance which threatens our life, liberty, and identity as free people of the world. Amidst all this is hope.

Opening in São Paulo, Brazil to audiences of as many as 600 viewing devices per night, and followed by an African/European run featuring a cast from three different continents, The Art of Facing Fear arrives in the United States Saturday, September 5th and runs through Sunday, September 27th. This U.S. production features a cast of actors performing from across the U.S., including California, New York, Oregon, Nevada, Georgia, and Alaska.

With each production, The Art of Facing Fear has grown to include new artists and audiences. The large and diverse United States cast joins the Brazilian and African/European versions as part of an expansive international family. What started in Brazil has grown into a movement that includes 10 countries. New performers and audiences from the world over continue to unite to face the fear of our current world situation, and each version of The Art of Facing Fear tailors the script and new devised work to the countries in which it is performed, pushing the boundaries of digital theatre.

The Art of Facing Fear is written by Ivam Cabral and Rodolfo García Vázquez, founders of São Paulo's experimental theatre group, Os Satyros and is directed by Vázquez. Because of the unique aspects of digital theatre both will remain on The American Project, and Vázquez has directed all three productions of the piece to date.

"We don't know each other, but somehow our humanity in this pandemic makes us all very close to each other. There is a feeling of the human community and that we all belong to the same race and we are experiencing versions of the same thing right now," director Vázquez said during the first rehearsal with the U.S. team, speaking to the reactions from audience members in the Brazilian and African/European post-performance talk-backs.

Ensemble: Jessica Berón, Rogelio Douglas III, Bryan Ha, Megan Skye Hale, Mia Hjelte, Jessenia Ingram, Zed E. Jones, Rob Lecrone, Andre Engracia Mello, Mia Mountain, Nakasha Norwood, Michael James Nuells, Therese Olson, Danielle Rabinovitch, Amable Junior Rosa, Terrence Robinson

Director: Rodolfo García Vázquez (Brazil)

Playwright: Ivam Cabral and Rodolfo García Vázquez (Brazil)

Music Composer: Marcelo Nassi (Brazil)

Visual designer: Adriana Vaz | Rogério Romualdo (Brazil)

Sound Operator: Léo Pegozzi (Brazil)

Photographer: Andre Stefano (Brazil)

Multimedia Designer: Henrique Mello (Brazil)

Lighting: Rodolfo García Vázquez (Brazil)

Producers: Armando Molina (Company of Angels) and Rob Lecrone, with Janna Julian (Os Satyros), Ulrika Malmgren and Katta Pålson (Darling Desperados), and Matthew Quinn (Combined Artform.)

Showtimes: Saturdays 5pm Pacific and Sundays 3pm Pacific, September 5-27

Tickets: $2-$50 advance ticket required, limited availability at each price level.

Box office (sales close an hour before the show):

companyofangels.org/aoff

Zoom link for each performance will be emailed a half hour before the show.

Website: http://www.companyofangels.org/aoff