“The Castle Spring Arts Series” Presents
Drama, Music And The Spoken Word
Sunday, April 27;
Sunday, May 4; Sunday, May 18; And Sunday, June 22, 2014; 3:00 P.M.
Formerly incarcerated men and women perform;
Series also offers a special event featuring David Rothenberg, founder of the Fortune Society
Castle Gardens, 625 W. 140th Street, New York, NY
TICKETS: $20
Call David Rothenberg at 212-255-8510 or e-mail him at [email protected]
Reservations are strongly recommended.
The Fortune Society presents “The Castle Spring Art Series” – a series of dramatic and music performances by formerly incarcerated men and women who collectively served almost 70 years behind bars. The series also features a special event with Fortune Society Founder, David Rothenberg.
Sunday, April 27, 2014 at 3 p.m.
Adirondack – a musical performance and discussion by John Michael Hersey. Hersey’s music career spans three decades in pop, folk, rock, and new wave. In the late 80s he was a frequent performer in clubs like CBGB’s and Kenny’s Castaways. His albums include Soup Du Jour (1999), Whirligig (2003), and How Am I Here? (2007). In January 2014, Hersey released his latest record, Adirondack, named for the correctional facility in upstate New York where he was an inmate in 2010-11. Hersey earned his PhD in ethnomusicology from NYU and published Forever Doo-wop: Race, Nostalgia and Vocal Harmony (UMASS Press 2010).
Sunday, May 4, 2014
The Bull Pen – a funny, riveting and emotional one-man show written and acted by Joseph Assadourian who portrays 18 different characters he met while serving time in state prison. Rothenberg compares Assadourian to a young Richard Pryor and John Leguizamo. (Explicit language.)
Sunday, May 18, 2014 at 3 p.m.
Namedropping – Fortune’s founder David Rothenberg reflects on his 40 years working in the theater and criminal justice. As a theatrical agent and publicist in the 1960s, David Rothenberg worked with Liz Taylor, Richard Burton, Lauren Bacall and others. But, he was also the guy who was rushed to Attica prison at the height of the bloody takeover in 1971. The inmates wanted him as an observer in the yard during negotiations with the State. It was David’s experience in 1967 producing a small cutting-edge Off-Broadway prison drama – Fortune and Men’s Eyes – that made all the difference. The production and its aftermath had such a profound impact, that he gave up his career on Broadway and founded the Fortune Society.
Sunday, June 22, 2014 at 3 p.m.
Castle II – a dramatic play written and performed by four formerly imprisoned New Yorkers who share their stories of crime and their path to redemption. “Castle II” is a sequel to “The Castle,” a critically-acclaimed off-Broadway show that played for 14 months at the New World Stages. Castle II has an active touring schedule with performances at colleges, prisons, churches and conventions.