Finding ways for people to connect to an issue as broad as climate change can often be a challenge for activists. The performing arts are one avenue for making the global phenomenon personal. The MU Theater Department recently took part in one such effort, with a week-long series of performances. KBIA’s Becca Newton attended and filed an audio postcard.
Audio Postcard: Theater activism aims to inspire climate change action
1 of
— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Prathithi Parasuram delivers a dramatic monologue during Initiation by Angella Emurwon, directed by Aidah Nalubowa. The chorus behind Parasuram speak in sync with her striking retelling of how human actions have impacted the earth.
Becca Newton / KBIA
2 of
— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Gehazi Whitehurst kneels while Bailey Crouch and Evan Gagliardo sit behind him during The Pageant by Paula Cizmar, directed by Irene Gasarah. The trio fight over how they should represent the annual New Green Planet in their post-climate crisis world. “It speaks a lot to how, in today's world, people don't like to talk about the parts in history that don't look so glamorous,” Whitehurst said.
Becca Newton / KBIA
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— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Caleb Jared and Ben Tatum participate in an interview about climate mobilization during So Beautiful Day, So Sunny by Marcus Youssef and Seth Klein, directed by Aidah Nalubowa. The pair speak about Canada’s climate action plan in a not-so distant future. “We need to link climate mobilization to tackling inequality,” Jared emphasizes.
Becca Newton / KBIA
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— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Bailey Crouch as grandmother and Jack Fulkerson as grandson read together during Sammie & Gran by Mark Rigney, directed by Irene Gasarah. Sammie was not happy with the stories his grandma was telling about the world around them, so he decided to share his own story of optimism.
Becca Newton / KBIA
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— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Ayanna Taylor holds out a leaf from her traveler’s bag during The Wanderer by Taylor Sklenar, directed by Kasey Lynch. This short act tells the tale of a climate refugee searching for home in the midst of an international climate crisis.
Becca Newton / KBIA
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— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Gabriel Levi performs a piece they wrote themselves, The Birth of My Culture directed by Kasey Lynch, with exaggerated hand motions. This spoken word poem details environmental racism and how “a healthy environment should not be a damn luxury.”
Becca Newton / KBIA
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— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Francisco Melendez, Reggie Coleman, Kennedy Rhoades, and Gehazi Whitehurst tell the story of Moo! Be Quiet! Lambchop’s Secret Mission to Steal Every Cow in the World by Alister Emerson, directed by Brandon Riley. Special agents Snowflake and Mullet interview the parents of Lambchop after their son stole several cows and stored them in their home.
Becca Newton / KBIA
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— Scenes from the Climate Change Theater Action
Makayla Green is circled by Ryan Klohr, Francisco Melendez, and De’Janna Scales-Hand during Bedtime Story for My (future) Daughter by Caity-Shea Violette, directed by Kasey Lynch. “You were born into a world with fresh air and clean water,” the storyteller explains to her daughter.
Becca Newton / KBIA
