Baruch Performing Arts Center With Blessed Unrest And Teatri ODA Of Kosovo Present The World Premiere Of REFUGE

Baruch Performing Arts Center, along with New York-based theater company Blessed Unrest and Teatri ODA of Kosovo, will co-present the World Premiere of Refuge from April 25 - May 11 @ 7:30, with a variable weekly schedule and a 5pm performance Sun May 5 (Opening Night April 27) at Baruch Performing Arts Center, 55 Lexington Avenue (25th Street between Third and Lexington Avenues), NYC.

Performances are at 7:30pm Monday-Saturday, with opening night on April 27 and an added 5pm performance on Sunday, May 5. Tickets are $16-36 and may be purchased at www.baruch.cuny.edu/bpac.

A deathbed confession launches a young Jewish woman on a journey of discovery to a remote Albanian village. What she finds reveals both the truth of her family's escape, and those who risked everything to provide them with refuge.

NYC-based Blessed Unrest teams up with Teatri ODA from Kosovo and musicians from Metropolitan Klezmer for this world-premiere devised physical-theatre piece based on actual events. During World War II, thousands of Jewish refugees were harbored by families in Albania, most of whom were practicing Muslims. Despite Nazi occupation, no Jews were taken to concentration camps from Albania, and it was the only country in Europe with more Jews at the end of the war than at the beginning. The Albanians took in people with whom they did not share language, religion, or culture, sheltering them as honored guests and defending them with their lives. Refuge shines light on this little-known history, with the current backdrop of anti-Semitic attacks, the refugee crisis in Europe, and our own nation's attempts to close our doors to refugees and migrants.

Refuge is the third original play created by the two companies since 2005. They have toured together six times through the Balkans, in Western Europe, and in New York, including the first-ever US/Kosovar theatre project in the United States. Their production of Doruntine was awarded first prize at the 2016 Secondo Festival in Zurich, Switzerland. Following its world premiere production at Baruch Performing Arts Center, Refuge will tour to Western Europe and the Balkans in 2020.

Refuge is co-created by Blessed Unrest and Teatri Oda, co-directed by Jessica Burr and Florent Mehmeti, with text by Matt Opatrny and Florent Mehmeti, and live music by Metropolitan Klezmer featuring Ismail Butera, Debra Kreisberg, & Eve Sicular. The creative team includes Set Designers Teddy Jefferson & Sonya Plenefisch, Costume Designer Caitlin Cisek, Lighting Designer Jay Ryan, Sound Designer Adrian Bridges, Production Stage Manager Darielle Shandler, Assistant Director Ben Peterson, and Dramaturg Julia Levine. The cast includes Eshref Durmishi, Daniela Markaj, Nancy McArthur, Becca Schneider, Ilire Vinca, and Perri Yaniv.

Visit www.baruch.cuny.edu/bpac for complete and up-to-date information on the 2018-19 season.

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