Theater Mitu Presents UTOPIAN HOTLINE in September

Theater Mitu, a company driven by a commitment to theatrical innovation, is proud to present the world premiere of Utopian Hotline, an expansive performance that invites audiences of 12 to imagine a more perfect future. Over the course of 18 months, Theater Mitu's diverse ensemble, led by director Rubén Polendo, developed Utopian Hotline in partnership with SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute, Arizona State University's Interplanetary Initiative, and Brooklyn Independent Middle School. Previews begin at the company's home, MITU580 (580 Sackett Street, Brooklyn), on September 3, with an opening set for September 8, for a limited run through September 26, 2021. Tickets are now on sale at https://theatermitu.org/.

Is anyone out there? Is anyone listening? Are we alone? In 1977, NASA launched the twin Voyager spacecrafts to try and answer these questions. Aboard both is The Golden Record, an artifact intended to communicate who and what we are. After 43 years and over 13 billion miles, this proverbial message in a bottle is the farthest human-made object from earth.

If we were to send another message into the distant future, what message would we send?

To answer this, Theater Mitu created a public telephone hotline (646-694-8050) prompting people to leave messages to the future. These voicemails along with messages from astronauts, astronomers, futurists, spiritual communities, and middle school students make up the source material for Utopian Hotline, which can be experienced through live performances at MITU580 and an accompanying vinyl record of original music.

As New Yorkers re-emerge from this unprecedented year, Utopian Hotline seeks to create a moment of community. Audiences of 12 will gather in Gowanus, Brooklyn, not in the darkness of a traditional theater, but underneath a 30ft video installation, on a pink carpet, around a communal table, to re-imagine our shared future. Four performers, tethered to audience members by headphones, will musicalize and transmit these collected messages. Together, they will acknowledge coming into community as a radical action. An action that has consistently shaped this planet's future. An action that reaffirms that someone is listening, that we are, in fact, not alone.

Utopian Hotline has been created by Kayla Asbell, Denis Butkus, Cinthia Chen, Alex Hawthorn, Michael Littig, Dima Mikhayel Matta, Justin Nestor, Rubén Polendo, Monica Sanborn, Scott Spahr, Corey Sullivan, Isabella Uzcátegui, and Ada Westfall.

Fifty-four performances of Utopian Hotline will take place September 3-26, 2021, at MITU580, located at 580 Sackett Street in Brooklyn. Critics are welcome as of September 3 for an opening on Wednesday, September 8 at 7pm. The performance schedule is Tuesdays–Friday at 7pm and 8pm; Saturdays at 3pm, 4pm, 7pm, and 8pm; and Sundays at 3pm, 4pm, and 7pm. Tickets, priced at $25 ($20 student / $50 supporter), are available online at https://theatermitu.org/. Standard ticketing fees apply. The anticipated running time is approximately 45 minutes.

 

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