At Washington Square Park. Photos by Make the Road.
Street theater is alive and well! I directed and wrote a short play for a rally for the Excluded Workers Coalition, working with five worker-actors across labor union LiUNA Local 79, Make the Road, the Street Vendor Project, VOCAL-NY/ the 13th Forward, DRUM (Desis Rising Up and Moving), and the Carroll Gardens Nanny Association. This play - performed during a May Day rally for an audience of almost 400 different coalition members - was about labor protections that workers deserve, workplace solidarity, and how momos are not the only kind of Nepali food. We started by meeting and me asking questions to understand more about their workplace specific labor violations, way other workers have helped them through difficult times, and the workplace protections they would need to thrive; then I wrote up a script, we rehearsed, they gave me edits (i.e. Local 97 apprentices actually aren’t in charge of bricklaying, and you should replace that line with fireproofing or I probably would have a turkey and cheese sandwich for lunch, not PBnJ). This process - an exercise in public education, public theater, and art therapy for the worker-actors involved - was one of my favorite theater experiences!
