By Carla Zanoni
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
UPPER MANHATTAN — Uptown bards are having their plays showcased at the People’s Theatre Project’s first Spring Reading Festival.
The free five-week festival which will stage work from local artists at locations in Inwood and Washington Heights kicked off last weekend at the Manhattan Times offices with a performance of "Le Roy, Le Roy, Le Roy," written by Paula Gilovich and directed by Dan Stermer.
Topics related to uptown culture saturate the pieces, which were written by artists taking part in the theatre project’s Resident Professional Playwrights Unit, whose mission is to "develop and showcase professional new works in northern Manhattan."
Issues of "education, gentrification, civil rights and the role of art in our lives" are tackled in the performances, which will be followed by an open discussion regarding the themes of the play.
According to organizers, each performance was "thematically matched with a local landmark in order to bring awareness to and celebrate the rich resources of the community."
The People’s Theatre Project’s "Spring Reading Festival" runs through June 11 with the following scehdule.
The Lords of Wye by Joshua Vink
Sunday, May 15 at 3 p.m.
The Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center
3940 Broadway
Based on the three autobiographical narratives of Frederick Douglass, this play explores the development of six-year-old Frederick's consciousness, both as a victim of slavery and as a witness to shocking events in the lives of his friends and family members.
24 Hours at Tiempo by Carlos J. Serrano
Monday, May 23 at 7 p.m.
Coogan’s Restaurant
4015 Broadway
During one incredible day when everything changes (yet everything stays the same), time is of the essence for the New Yorkers who work at and frequent this uptown comfort food mainstay.
Man In Boat by Kimberly Barrante
Monday, June 6 at 7 p.m.
The United Palace Cathedral Theater
4010 Broadway
An absurdist dark-comedy set in the media-saturated world of postmodern America. Stranded in a rowboat in the middle of the desert, Daniel sits impatiently waiting for the rainstorm that will carry him out of his rut. Still clinging to his childhood fantasies of gun-slinging, horse-riding heroes, Daniel is unable to remain a child, yet unable to grow-up.
The Chalkboard Trilogy by Nancy Nevarez
Saturday, June 11 at 2 p.m.
The Inwood Public Library
4790 Broadway
Three one act plays that explore educatio. The first is from the point of view of Uncle James and his niece, Lee, in South Carolina on the cusp of the civil rights movement. The second follows two young Afghani girls learning in the darkness of a bombed out basement, and the third follows a relationship between a tutor and her student over a 7 year period.
