8:46

7 p.m. Tuesday, June 30

theREP is very excited to be partnering with Black Theatre Troupe of Upstate NY, Inc. and a collective group of Capital Region organizations to present 8:46, a theatrical response to the series of murders and assaults of the past weeks, years, decades on Tuesday, June 30 at 7 p.m. with a talkback following the performance, featuring work from Acting with AaronBlack Theatre Troupe of Upstate NY, Inc.Troy Foundry TheatreCreative Action UnlimitedIlluminate Theatre, and Playhouse Stage Co.

This is a free event however, donations are being collected to support the artists involved in the project, with all proceeds from the event going to the African American Cultural Center of the Capital Region, Inc.
To make a donation text BTTUNY to 41444.

Each organization involved has been asked to create a response to the moment that takes 8 minutes and 46 seconds, the same time that the police officer knelt on George Floyd’s neck before he died.

HOW TO VIEW

Tune in at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 30 to the Black Theatre Troupe of Upstate NY’s Facebook page for a live viewing.

  • A Zoom link for the talkback will be posted to BTTUNY’s Facebook page shortly after the event begins.
  • Talkback is limited to 100 people.

The production will also air on the Public Access Channels for Albany, Schenectady and Troy.

Capital Repertory Theatre will present Dominique Morriseau’s short play, Night Vision, which brings audiences into Ayanna and Ezra’s apartment right after they witnessed a woman being beaten on the street by a man in a hooded sweatshirt. Once they have diffused the situation, the couple return to their apartment to call the police. However, before they can make the call, they discover how their individual accounts of the attacker differ and both are left questioning the truth of what they saw. Directed by Margo Hall, actors include Kevin Craig West and Susan Spain.

Meet the playwright:

Dominique Morisseau is the author of The Detroit Project (A 3-Play Cycle) which includes the following plays: Skeleton Crew (Atlantic Theater Company), Paradise Blue (Signature Theatre), and Detroit ’67 (Public Theater, Classical Theatre of Harlem and NBT). Additional plays include: Pipeline (Lincoln Center Theatre), Sunset Baby (LAByrinth Theatre); Blood at the Root (National Black Theatre) and Follow Me To Nellie’s (Premiere Stages). She is also the TONY nominated book writer on the new Broadway musical Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations (Imperial Theatre). Dominique is alumna of The Public Theater Emerging Writer’s Group, Women’s Project Lab, and Lark Playwrights Workshop and has developed work at Sundance Lab, Williamstown Theatre Festival and Eugene O’Neil Playwrights Conference. She most recently served as Co-Producer on the Showtime series “Shameless” (3 seasons). Additional awards include: Spirit of Detroit Award, PoNY Fellowship, Sky-Cooper Prize, TEER Trailblazer Award, Steinberg Playwright Award, Audelco Awards, NBFT August Wilson Playwriting Award, Edward M. Kennedy Prize for Drama, OBIE Award (2), Ford Foundation Art of Change Fellowship, Variety’s Women of Impact for 2017-18, and a recent MacArthur Genius Grant Fellow.

Meet the director:

Margo Hall is an actor/director/educator that has performed and directed in theaters throughout the Bay Area. Recent directing credits: How I Learned What I Learned for Marin Theater Company, BARBECUE, (which she also starred in) Red Velvet , and The Story for SF Playhouse, Brownsville Song, b-side for tray, and Bulrusher with Ellen Sebastian Chang for Shotgun Players, and Thurgood for Lorraine Hansberry Theater. Chabot College: Fabulation, Hamlet Blood in the Brain,The Trojan Women, SPUNK, Ragtime, and A Streetcar Named Desire, and Polaroid Stories at UC Berkeley.

Meet the cast:

Susan Spain (Ayanna): Off Broadway-Love Letters (Triad Theatre), Black Monday (New York Theatre Workshop), Other Aspects (Winner Downtown Urban Theatre Festival Award at HERE Arts Center, Nuyorican Poet’s Café), The ATrainPlays (The Neighborhood Playhouse), The Cherry OrchardDark of the MoonJack and Birthright. Regional-Judevine (Oldcastle Theatre Company), Jesus Christ Superstar (Saint Michael’s Playhouse), Hair, Blues in the Night, and Big River. Tours with “Shadows of the 60s Tribute to Motown”, Susan has appeared in films and on television, and has narrated over 100 audio books, receiving an Earphones Award for her work.

Kevin Craig West (Ezra): Award winning actor/filmmaker and proud member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA. When not on camera or stage, he enjoys producing, directing, writing and coaching. He also enjoys sharing his talents as a teacher/artist and has worked with many Arts in Education groups including Theatre for a New Audience, Only Make Believe, and Symphony Space. Kevin is the owner of the production company, MoBetta Films, an advisory board member of WAM Theatre as well as Lake Placid Film Forum, former President of Upstate Independents and has served as Assistant Director of FilmColumbia Festival. Follow @KevinCraigWest.