This project is currently on hiatus.
Theatre doesn’t always happen on stage. It unfolds all around us on a daily basis.
In 2015, we witnessed with horror the tragic death of Eric Garner at the hands of NYC police officers. Our city was forced to grapple with questions of history, procedure, and social responsibility, and Irondale saw an opportunity to contribute to the discussion through its unique lens of improvisation, actor training, and ensemble building.
Over the past 10 years, To Protect, Serve, and Understand™ (TPSU™) has gained local and national acclaim for being an innovative training program designed to ease tension between police and community members. Each series of workshops lasts ten weeks. Seven officers and seven community members come together to break bread, play, sing and have difficult conversations. They learn how to communicate and how to listen. They learn to improvise, tell their own stories, and “step into each other’s shoes.” The workshops culminate in public performances that show what can come from mutual trust and empathetic understanding.
Watch a video about the series here:
Read this New York Times article to learn more about this decision.
For more than 40 years, Irondale has been a place where artists and audiences matter.
To do the work we do, we count on our community of friends, neighbors and citizen artists who share our value of creating projects that speak to the issues of today.
We are entirely in debt to our community. Your support makes it possible.
DONATE TODAY to help us guarantee the future of our company, artists & staff.
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