PROTEST – Press Release

–For immediate release—

In Partnership with the Embassy of the Czech Republic and Mutual Inspirations Festival

Ambassador Theate­­­­­r Presents

PROTEST

By Vaclav Havel

Translated by Vera Blackwell

Directed by Gail Humphries Mardirosian

Music by Jerzy Sapieyevski

Set Designed by Jonathan Rushbrook

Costumes by Sigrid Johannesdottir

Sound Design by George Gordon

Light Design by Zachary Dalton

Movement by Benjamin Cunis

Stage Manager Jim Vincent

Featuring:

Michael Crowley as Vanek Sissel Bakken as Vankova

Ivan Zizek as Stanek Hanna Bondarewska as Stankova

WHERE: Mead Theater Lab at Flashpoint, 916 G Street NW, Washington DC

WHEN: November 19 – December 15, 2013

November 19, 2013 Preview at 8 pm

Opening November 20, 2013 at 8 pm, Reception Follows

Press Night: Saturday Nov. 23 at 8:00 pm

Wednesdays – Saturdays at 8:00 pm

Matinees: Saturday and Sundays at 2:00 pm

TICKETS: $20 – $40 On line: http://www.aticc.org/home/box-office

For mature audiences

Media/Press: please e-mail us to reserve your tickets!

No performances during the week of Thanksgiving: Nov. 27 – 30

In PROTEST, we meet a dissident on return home from prison and a person deeply involved in a campaign to protest against the government by getting people to sign a petition calling for a change in the political system. One character is the protesting artist who suffered for his beliefs, the other a compromising and compromised playwright. In this unique interpretation, the two male characters of Stanek and Vanek will have counter egos — characters echoed in two females, emphasizing the universality of the characters.The play was written in the 1978 by acclaimed human rights activist and the first president of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel, and is an indictment of individuals who refuse to protest corrupt political systems and collude for their own personal advantage.  It is also an investigation of human behavior and an exploration of artistic prowess exerted through circumstances of personal adversity. Havel challenges us in this play with pertinent questions:  What is the connection between the arts and social responsibility/citizenry?  What choices do we make as individuals when faced with circumstances of extreme volatility—what would we do if we had to make a choice between survival, compromise or revolution?   How would you act in the midst of these extreme choices?Vaclav Havel is being honored by the Embassy throughout the year as a celebrated playwright, humanitarian and a world leader as part of their yearlong mutual inspirations festival. He was a prominent literary figure, described as Prague’s leading avant-garde writer, and a popular statesman. After years of victimization, Havel served as his country’s president, helping to realize changes in the government policy he had written about for so long. He was recognized with various prestigious international awards, including the US Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Prince of Asturias Award, and the International Gandhi Peace Prize.
Ambassador Theater’s mission is to build international cultural awareness, provide a high standard of international repertoire based on close relations with the diplomatic and cultural representatives of different countries in the United States, and provide international interactive educational programs for the youth of the District of Columbia, the D.C. Metro area, and around the United States. ATICC is a 501(c)3 Nonprofit Organization. For more information, visit www.aticc.org