Access to the Arts gives an economically powerful elite control of history. For those below middle class, the poor, black and less educated without retrospective significance and a cultural interpretation that gives meaning to their lives. Theater can help do that in regards to lynching. Therefore, live staged performances that address issues, express aspirations and portray realistic images of the black experience can find public expression. The Atlanta Vibe Repertory Company (AVRC), a consortium of independent artists and performers, collaborate to write, develop and produce theatric productions that not only enlighten but enrich community life on all levels.

Underwriting these productions with small fund-raisers, these artists use their crafts as educational tools. Through the AVRC's network, artists and performers fulfill a vital need by providing communities opportunities to reflect their unique character. The AVRC's small stage production community theater concept has developed real economic potential. It permits spoken word artists to build performance venues, which take theater to wider audiences, while offering challenging productions on the community level. This overview seeks funding for the community theater project proposed here.

The Production

The Portal brings together two one act plays, About Jem and The Block, into one production. Although similar in themes, these plays use different motifs to tell similar stories. Combining the two achieves versatility and originality, as well as economy. The Portal is envisioned as the doorway to different worlds, which produce the same results. Representing sensitivity thresholds, crossing The Portal consciously moves one beyond superficiality. Existentially, The Portal exposes life's pains, touching us all with penetrating clarity. These plays speak about the connectivity or the lack there of in our lives. The Portal brings up close the mechanistic response to the ugliness our insensitivity creates. Most turn away before it hits us in the face, shattering all pretenses of human concern. Stepping through The Portal opens the inner sanctum!

The Plays

About Jem is based on T.H.I.N.C. (Teaching Humanity In New Consciousness): The Chrysalis of Evolution, a book of poems and introspective stories by Yohannes Sharriff Smith which has been adapted to the stage by John Burl Smith. About Jem follows a conventional structure that uses dialogue to convey the story line about what happens when a young black man enters a predominately white southern university. This play reflects the multi-layered education college life provides, while simultaneously exposing familial attitudes that color one's everyday experiences. About Jem shows how an individual's humanity is ravished when they are viewed through stereotypes. Such value judgements close the doorway to empathy. In its largest sense, About Jem symbolizes the dehumanizing impact on everyone's spirit any time anyone becomes Jem.

Another original production, The Block is sketch theater at its best. Written by Aqiyl Thomas and Yohannes Sharriff Smith, it explores the impact of immovable objects and irresistible forces that collide with the everyday foibles of human survival. Their work is more a spoken word opera or concert than a play in the traditional sense. Poems rather than dialogue bridge subtle messages with authentic emotions. Magnifying the impact of a powerful story line with explosive imagery, The Block captures the familiar desperation of black life. It presents the every day bought and sold reality of slave descendants, as a continuum accentuating the systematic denial of individual humanity. Reaching beyond simply showcasing poetic talent, The Block fuses other artistic expression, like music, dance and improv to illuminate the struggle of the human spirit for relevance. Sizing up the world by what we encounter in our own little corner of The Block, characters are personifications, replicas fighting for personal space where one can feel safe and loved. A psycho-experiential trip, this performance fills in images the mind normally blocks out to disguise denial.

The Community

In 1997, the only venues available for spoken word artists were Open Mics. Spoken word audiences were basically a few dozen cult or artsy student types. Young black poets and other performers paid to enter venues then signed lists in hopes of getting an opportunity to perform. With few venues, competition for performance opportunities was fierce. Collaborating to expand spoken word performance opportunities while broadening their audience with greater entertainment choices, spoken word artists have grown their audience. Venues have proliferated to include featured performances, multiple vignettes and full stage productions such as plays and concerts.

Today's spoken word audiences are quite diverse. Groupings range from young professional entry level corporate types to the older culturally conscious trying to remain connected to the future. A testament to the Vibe's phenomenal growth, now artists' host venues nightly, with several a night on weekends. No longer dependent on students as its economic engine, spoken word audiences represent stable buying power in a growing segment among the Atlanta consuming public. This segment offers unique marketing advantages - the most important of which is the ability to focus messages directly on an active listening urban contemporary growth market.

The key to any out reach effort is having the ability to take interesting and informative art to under-served areas and keep cost at a level the targeted audience can afford. Community theater serves a need major theatrical companies do not satisfy for a number of reasons. First, their productions are designed to appeal to artistically savvy audiences. Next, they strive to represent mainstream viewpoints and appeal to the widest audience possible. Finally, they cast the most professional talent available. These companies cannot afford to experiment with untested playwrights and performers. The goal of community theater is all of the above. Moreover, community theater is audience-oriented and tries to use its performances as a platform for community issues. Such companies draw on the cultural uniqueness, strength and diversity of the host community. Community theaters increase their audiences by taking art into schools, community centers, parks, churches, hospitals, recovery centers, prisons, jails, colleges and universities. When community theater outreach programs work properly, art reaches individuals in places where celebrating life and the human spirit is often overshadowed by the daily struggle to survive.

Establishing a Framework

It is easy to say Atlanta has a community arts program with equal access and diversity when there is not a proposal on the table. Even more telling about Atlanta's commitment to community art is its out reach partners are the same established groups which it has always supported. This proposal seeks to establish an out reach framework that increase contact between organizations like the Alliance Theater which receives and administers funds for community arts projects and those producing community art. Moreover, it can be a conduit though which ideas are considered fairly and equitably. The major roadblocks to arts groups in the black community have been "Who to talk to and what do they want to hear?" Historic discrimination has maintained that roadblock but we continue to search for someone willing to move beyond the past and building new relationships.

An established framework will facilitate communications and enhance the proposed project in many ways. First economically, it will reduce the need for two venues. This will cuts most production cost in half, while giving the audience the opportunity to experience two different performances. Artistically, new local black playwrights and performers will have their work viewed by the public. Beyond increasing the professional talent pool of black performers locally and nationally, such exposure elevates Atlanta's black arts community, which is struggling to gain recognition in a highly competitive market place. More important, it will take art into new areas of Atlanta's under-served community and increase appreciation for the arts as a whole. Last but not least, it can introduce new professional opportunities to many young people, who are unaware the arts make a vital contribution to the economic well being of metropolitan Atlanta.

The tangible benefits derived from this approach are clear. It is affordable, accessible, specific, direct, efficient and about people. It provides the community with access and exposure to art through a well thought out strategy. This overview described spoken word as more than an entertainment venue, this proposal introduces its value and potential as an educational vehicle for the community. The goal of any out reach strategy is to reach targeted communities with specific messages. As vehicles go, spoken word is more effective than most, because its audience is comprised of willing listeners. This proposal is designed to meet the needs of artists, funding agents and the community, which are said to be the goals of the Alliance Theater.

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