Using both comedy and magical realism, Bamboo in Bushwick, the latest production from Working Theater, explores gentrification in Brooklyn. The play is based on workshops with members of Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council, Bushwick Salvation Army Community Center, El Puente Bushwick, Make the Road New York and conversations with neighborhood residents. As part of the playwriting process, the Working Theater hosted story circles, where long-term residents shared stories, hopes and dreams about the neighborhood that they call home.
Working Theater, which was founded in 1985, works on producing plays for and about working people. “We believe that theater should not be a privilege or a luxury, but a staple,” states the theater in a press release for the production. “Toward that goal, we offer stories that reflect a diverse population of the working majority, acknowledging their complexity and often-denied power in an increasingly complex world.”
The play is part of the group’s Five Boroughs/One City initiative, where five pairs of writers and directors are involved in creating a new production in each of the five boroughs.
PSC will host a theater party featuring a performance of the play at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 23, at Urban Stages in Manhattan, 259 W. 30th Street, between Eighth and Ninth avenues.
For more information about attending the PSC theater party, contact Steve Leberstein or Marcia Newfield.
