We are hoping to raise $10,000 to support the production costs of Tzaqik & future BBTC projects.
Proudly so, Tzaqik is one of the first productions at UC, Irvine that has cast our performers regardless of their cultural & gender identities, as we believe that everyone has equal rights to represent their stories. A true collaboration between the art departments at the Claire Trevor School of the Arts at UCI.
WHO WE ARE: REPRESENTATION & INCLUSION
Brown Bag Theater Company is a student-run, nonprofit ensemble at UC, Irvine. We produce critically engaging work that reflects, impacts, and empowers the Latinx community, while still supporting fellow cultural members that do not identify as Latinx. We encourage the youth of new generations to take control of their own destiny through creative discipline and artistic excellence, and through taking pride in and responsibility over their ideas and actions. We actively encourage and practice inclusiveness, thus we often partner with other groups on campus such as Theater Woks, Brick Co. and Black Door (the Pacific Asian, LGBTQIA+ and Black cultural/art groups on campus).
WHY SUPPORT: STUDENT & YOUTH INVOLVEMENT
Tzaqik in particular is a very unique project. It is written, choreographed, designed and composed by various individuals that identify as part of marginalized or overlooked communities. The story revolves around our (and our ancestors') collective "tragedies, miseries & laments" - hardships - as we venture bravely into a better tomorrow, as we fight for our stories to be told and heard and as we take pride in where we come from and where we are headed.
The production team of Tzaqik has decided to also represent communities in which verbal communication is either limited or unavailable, thus our story is narrated through movement just as much as it is narrated through conventional words and dialogue. This is rarely seen in live performances and other mediums of entertainment. Thanks to this, there are various ways to interpret and understand our semi-devised performance, allowing audience members who are usually isolated or singled out to feel as part of a collective, fluid comprehension.
Additionally, we have written our project with sections in English, Spanish, German, Chinese and Ki'che', in order to promote the need of intercultural engagement, the idea that it is okay "not to understand" but respect is always needed. Multiple workshops & community events will be held in the Fall of 2019 to assist in creating the best possible project, such as the playwrighting "Story Circles" 3-day workshop in November and closed workshops for performers near December.
In order to reach as many possible audience members, we are looking for support to elevate not only our production value but also to strengthen our voices and our mission. The more support raised, the bigger our impact will be within our community of young story tellers in Southern California. We seek to empower our youth, showing them that if a group of young artists like us can achieve a level of professional work through this project, all thanks to our hard work, that they can too. We believe there are no limits for a team that is wholeheartedly devoted and dedicated to achieving an important goal of this significance and amplitude.
The support given to our group will be solely devoted to making this project the best it can be - the most impactful it can be. We need your help to make this work successful, and to make sure that it remains accessible to everyone in the area, specifically our youth. There is currently no cost for admission and we wish to keep it this way.
To thank our supporters, we will send out a personalized, digital multimedia package which will show our work from conception to closing night.
Below you may find images of our group's past meetings and events as well as an artistic description of the project Tzaqik, a tale of many. For more information feel free to reach out to our project's Artistic Director, Jesús López at lopezvar@uci.edu or (915) 702-3704.
PRODUCTION DESCRIPTION: TZAQIK | a tale, of many
Inspired by the Mayan myth of Xb’alanque, the moon twin-god from the Ki'che' “Popol Vuh”, we are presented with the story of a gentle deity doomed to watch the miseries, tragedies and laments of human kind, in an effort to find a cure for sadness. Tzaqik is a contemporary mystical performance inspired by and dedicated to the many who fight for a better tomorrow, to the many seeking the light.
Rooted on various cultures from around the world and their many myths and stories, Tzaqik aims to thrill and captivate its audiences by integrating multilingual verse, original music and stylized movement, along with experimental visual designs in order to compose an unforgettable live experience. Choreographed by Piper Bockstahler, directed by Jesús López Vargas and fully composed by Dimitri Soto and Ezra Anisman, Tzaqik tells and represents the tragedies, but most importantly the triumphs, of many different groups of marginalized peoples around the world.
This project is currently offering professional-level opportunities to 39 young visual artists, linguists, performers, writers, music composers, designers, technicians & project managers within our Southern California region, and we are one of the first performance groups to casts their performers regardless of each individuals' cultural or gender identities, taking a strong stand for inclusion.
DATES:
March 27th, 28th & 29th at 8pm (70 seats)
March 28th & 29th at 4pm (70 seats)
Invited Dress Rehearsal (for donors & producers only) March 26th at 7:45pm, limited to 50 seats.
20-min talk backs with the production/design team & performers will take place after each evening performance.
VENUE:
xMPL - Experimental Media Performance Lab (at the University of California, Irvine | Contemporary Arts Center)
To reserve seats please email lopezvar@uci.edu or message (915) 702-3704.
The show runs at an approximate 1hr & 15 minutes.
Give What You Can Admission
For more information visit jelopez-stage.com or brownbagtheatre.wixsite.com/brownbagtheatre
All producers and donors to this project will receive a personalized multimedia package by the end of the process showing our work from conception to closing night, created by the artistic team of this project.
Through this contribution you would help us develop and finance our workshop events open to the public, such as the "Story Circles" workshop in November, lead by Brown Bag, Brick Theater Co. & Theater Woks.
Through this contribution you would be helping our team develop our publicity and promotional needs, in order for our voices to reach as many people as possible! This includes the production of videos, collages, digital flyers, posters, banners, online presence, etc.
As a Design Donor, you would be helping meet and elevate the production value across the design areas of lighting, sound and projections, such as the acquirement of gobos, gels, lenses, special cable runs and rental of equipment.
As a Production Donor, you would be helping meet and elevate the production value across both the construction and design of costumes and scenic elements. You would also be helping with the costs of original music composition, orchestration & recording.
As a Co-Producer you would be helping narrow down the costs of travel and modest accommodations for our guest designers, guest performers and dramaturgy team. This includes any costs for site-specific research and interviews, in order to guarantee accuracy with the script, visual elements and plot.
As an Executive Producer you would allow the Tzaqik development team to facilitate access and transportation for student and youth groups around the Orange County area to come enjoy our production, providing them with a rare opportunity to see a youth-produced show that marries the arts of design, literature, drama, music, dance and technology, at the professional level.