Workshop

In partnership with The Union for Contemporary Art, Metropolitan Community College and Great Plains Theatre Commons, the Omaha Community Playhouse is hosting a series of community events in conjunction with the opening of August Wilson’s Fences on the Hawks Mainstage Theatre. Three workshops led by Kim Louise, Dr. Khalid Y. Long, and Wali Jamal on theatre and playwriting will be held on the Metropolitan Community College campus in Building 22 on Saturday, January 21. The event is free, but registration is required.  Chopped: The Playwright’s Edition, Kim Louise, Facilitator During this generative workshop, we will explore new ways to create plays by delving into mash ups with other literary and writing forms. We will write without boundaries and invent, for ourselves, unique recipes for constructing drama. Building on the premise that genre informs genre, our goal is not to eliminate but to elevate our writing by introducing a new practice or strengthening a current one.  Call & Response: August Wilson Workshop, Khalid Long, PhD, Facilitator Taking their cue from Wilson and his four Bs, workshop attendees will creatively “respond” to an “artistic call.” In other words, they will explore the potential of various sources to inspire their creative imaginings. Using a piece of visual art or music as their inspiration, workshop attendees will produce a creative writing project in a timed session (the beginnings of a creative essay, a ten-minute play, a song, a short story, or a collection of poems, etc.). They will be responsible for briefly explaining the project to the group. This exercise aims to get workshop attendees to think deeply through practice about their artistic inspirations and callings.  The August Wilson Artists’ Corner, Wali Jamal, Facilitator Wali Jamal, from Pittsburgh, PA is the only actor in the world to have appeared in all 11 of August Wilson’s works, the 10-play Century Cycle and the autobiographical show How I Learned What I Learned. Join Mr. Jamal for a compelling workshop to celebrate the work of August Wilson and to strengthen your skills as an actor, storyteller, and collaborator. Wali will share personal stories of his time working with August Wilson and dive into the dynamic pathways and strategies used to bring Wilson’s words to life. This workshop will leave the participants inspired and motivated to share their stories with the world. Dr. Khalid Y. Long is a scholar, dramaturg, and director specializing in African American/Black diasporic theatre, performance, and literature through the lenses of Black feminist/womanist thought, queer studies, and performance studies. Accordingly, his work pays close attention to the intersections of race, class, gender, and sexuality within marginalized and oppressed communities. Dr. Long has published scholarly essays in The Black Theatre Review (tBTR), Continuum: The Journal of African Diaspora Drama, Theatre and Performance, the Journal of American Drama and Theatre, and the Routledge Companion to African American Theatre and Performance. His forthcoming scholarship includes essays in The Cambridge Companion to African American Theatre (2nd edition) edited by Harvey Young, Zora Neale Hurston…