Play and Photography Exhibit Expose the Plight of Refugees
PITTSBURGH - Pittsburgh Playback Theatre's newest play The Unintended, by Paulo Nzambi, exposes the present-day heart-breaking plight of refugee Afghani children in Pakistan. 4th River presents The Unintended at 8 pm, Friday and Saturday, June 13 and 14, and at 2 pm, Sunday, June 15, 2008, at the Three Rivers Arts Festival Gallery at 937 Liberty Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh.
An original work produced in partnership with the Pittsburgh Refugee Center, The Unintended represents the second 4th River collaboration between these two groups and the Three Rivers Arts Festival. In 2007, Pittsburgh Refugee Center Executive Director Khadra Mohammed visited Afghani refugees living in Pakistan on a trip facilitated by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. She witnessed children as young as three years old working 12-hour days in factories, with no access to education or health facilities. Upon her return, the Refugee Center commissioned Pittsburgh Playback Theatre to write, produce and perform a play about the plight of these children.
"We have found in the past few years that one of the most effective ways to engage our community is through the arts," says Mohammed. "We want our community to see refugees not as numbers but as people with individual stories that exceed our understanding of poverty and hardship. The script, the actor's nuance of the words, the gesture and the facial expressions bring our refugee stories to life, and to the hearts and minds of our audiences."
Since 1986, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre has developed interactive performances that are custom-designed to meet the needs of audiences and host institutions. Through its work, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre gives voices to people who cannot or do not easily speak for themselves. Past Playback project topics have included the events of September 11, the Holocaust, the stress of working with terminally ill patients, and HIV prevention and awareness. After each performance of The Unintended, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre Founder Roni Ostfield will conduct workshops that help to foster dialogue among audience members, encouraging reflection on what they just saw on stage.
A lawyer by trade, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre company member Paulo Nzambi is also an actor, playwright and poet. Nzambi came to the United States in the 1970s as a refugee from Angola. His work To Suffer the Silence, the story of Darfur refugee Hashim Mersal, was produced as a 2007 4th River Project. To Suffer the Silence was also the product of a collaboration with the Pittsburgh Refugee Center.
Tickets for The Unintended are $5, available at www.artsfestival.net or by calling 412.456.6666.
With The Unintended, an exhibition of photographs from Mohammed's trip titled Forgotten Refugee Children: No Return Home will be on display in the Three Rivers Arts Festival gallery June 13-22, 2008. Gallery hours are 12 noon - 8 pm daily. The gallery is free and open to the public.
Calendar Listings
4th River presents Pittsburgh Playback Theatre in The Unintended by Paulo Nzambi. 8 pm, Friday and Saturday, June 13 & 14, and 2 pm Sunday, June 15, 2008. Three Rivers Arts Festival Gallery, 937 Liberty Avenue, Downtown Pittsburgh. $5. For tickets, visit www.artsfestival.net or call 412.456.6666.
4th River presents Forgotten Refugee Children: No Return Home. Photographs by Khadra Mohammed, Pittsburgh Refugee Center. June 14-22, 2008. Three Rivers Arts Festival Gallery, 937 Liberty Avenue, Downtown Pittsburgh. Free. Gallery hours are 12 noon - 8 pm daily.
About the Pittsburgh Refugee Center
The Pittsburgh Refugee Center is an advocacy agency that empowers refugees to become self-sufficient and integrated into their new communities. The work of the PRC is grounded in a service philosophy that encourages and ultimately empowers refugees to take control of their lives by becoming an active participant in planning and managing their own development.
About Pittsburgh Playback Theatre
Pittsburgh Playback Theatre is a professional theatre company that includes some of the most talented actors and directors in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh Playback Theatre listens to and reflects the human experience in a way that increases each individual's sense of community and respect for humanity. Pittsburgh Playback Theatre uses improvisational performance to engage the audience in meaningful dialogue.
About the Three Rivers Arts Festival
4th River is a program of the Three Rivers Arts Festival. The mission of the Three Rivers Arts Festival is to connect the community to the arts. The 49th annual Three Rivers Arts Festival runs from June 6-22, 2008. For more information, call the Festival at 412.281.8723 or visit our website www.artsfestival.net.
Download this press release
An original work produced in partnership with the Pittsburgh Refugee Center, The Unintended represents the second 4th River collaboration between these two groups and the Three Rivers Arts Festival. In 2007, Pittsburgh Refugee Center Executive Director Khadra Mohammed visited Afghani refugees living in Pakistan on a trip facilitated by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. She witnessed children as young as three years old working 12-hour days in factories, with no access to education or health facilities. Upon her return, the Refugee Center commissioned Pittsburgh Playback Theatre to write, produce and perform a play about the plight of these children.
"We have found in the past few years that one of the most effective ways to engage our community is through the arts," says Mohammed. "We want our community to see refugees not as numbers but as people with individual stories that exceed our understanding of poverty and hardship. The script, the actor's nuance of the words, the gesture and the facial expressions bring our refugee stories to life, and to the hearts and minds of our audiences."
Since 1986, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre has developed interactive performances that are custom-designed to meet the needs of audiences and host institutions. Through its work, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre gives voices to people who cannot or do not easily speak for themselves. Past Playback project topics have included the events of September 11, the Holocaust, the stress of working with terminally ill patients, and HIV prevention and awareness. After each performance of The Unintended, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre Founder Roni Ostfield will conduct workshops that help to foster dialogue among audience members, encouraging reflection on what they just saw on stage.
A lawyer by trade, Pittsburgh Playback Theatre company member Paulo Nzambi is also an actor, playwright and poet. Nzambi came to the United States in the 1970s as a refugee from Angola. His work To Suffer the Silence, the story of Darfur refugee Hashim Mersal, was produced as a 2007 4th River Project. To Suffer the Silence was also the product of a collaboration with the Pittsburgh Refugee Center.
Tickets for The Unintended are $5, available at www.artsfestival.net or by calling 412.456.6666.
With The Unintended, an exhibition of photographs from Mohammed's trip titled Forgotten Refugee Children: No Return Home will be on display in the Three Rivers Arts Festival gallery June 13-22, 2008. Gallery hours are 12 noon - 8 pm daily. The gallery is free and open to the public.
Calendar Listings
4th River presents Pittsburgh Playback Theatre in The Unintended by Paulo Nzambi. 8 pm, Friday and Saturday, June 13 & 14, and 2 pm Sunday, June 15, 2008. Three Rivers Arts Festival Gallery, 937 Liberty Avenue, Downtown Pittsburgh. $5. For tickets, visit www.artsfestival.net or call 412.456.6666.
4th River presents Forgotten Refugee Children: No Return Home. Photographs by Khadra Mohammed, Pittsburgh Refugee Center. June 14-22, 2008. Three Rivers Arts Festival Gallery, 937 Liberty Avenue, Downtown Pittsburgh. Free. Gallery hours are 12 noon - 8 pm daily.
About the Pittsburgh Refugee Center
The Pittsburgh Refugee Center is an advocacy agency that empowers refugees to become self-sufficient and integrated into their new communities. The work of the PRC is grounded in a service philosophy that encourages and ultimately empowers refugees to take control of their lives by becoming an active participant in planning and managing their own development.
About Pittsburgh Playback Theatre
Pittsburgh Playback Theatre is a professional theatre company that includes some of the most talented actors and directors in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh Playback Theatre listens to and reflects the human experience in a way that increases each individual's sense of community and respect for humanity. Pittsburgh Playback Theatre uses improvisational performance to engage the audience in meaningful dialogue.
About the Three Rivers Arts Festival
4th River is a program of the Three Rivers Arts Festival. The mission of the Three Rivers Arts Festival is to connect the community to the arts. The 49th annual Three Rivers Arts Festival runs from June 6-22, 2008. For more information, call the Festival at 412.281.8723 or visit our website www.artsfestival.net.
Download this press release
