(Kensington) Streetplay, 2018
Dramaturg, Set designer, Performance facilitator, Documentarian
Kensington, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Generously supported by the Wyncote Foundation, the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, the City of Philadelphia Office of Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy, IMPACT, and Mural Arts Philadelphia
a celebration of a community written and performed by members of the community. a site-specific, cultural immersion, story-sharing experience, along a mile walk of shifting neighborhood landscapes, sights, smells, and architectures.
sadly, the historic neighborhood of Kensington Philadelphia is presently known best for being the largest open-air drug market on the east coast, and as an epicenter of the city’s homeless crisis, and thus the neighborhood is often avoided by Philadelphians — but one cannot avoid a crisis created by avoidance and hope to find solutions.
the stories and people of this riverward neighborhood are diverse, complex, beautiful, and essential. the audience members are not merely audience, but also the instigators, the bystanders, the gatekeepers; come ready to listen, come full of empathy.
Photos by Daniel Kontz.