Media Contact: Michael Brix
Yes! And… Collaborative Arts
Executive Director
[email protected]
215-278-4264 (215-ART-GANG)
www.yesandcamp.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Shadow Company, the teen performing arts company of Yes! And… Collaborative Arts, announces for the 2016 Philadelphia
FringeArts Festival the world premier of
Paper Trail
A collection of stories about the complex and difficult realities we face in our world today.
Arch Street United Methodist Church
55 North Broad Street, Philadelphia PA 19107
Sept 9 @ 7pm | Sept 10 @ 3pm & 7pm
Yes! And… Collaborative Arts
21 W. Washington Lane, Philadelphia PA 19144
Sept 16 @ 7pm | Sept 17 @ 3pm & 7pm
PHILADELPHIA- Paper Trail is a series of collaborative pieces devised by the high school Shadow
Company of Yes! And… Collaborative Arts that took inspiration from current events such as the Stanford
rape case, Flint water crisis, access to guns, and police brutality. Using multiple styles and genres,
including: 1950’s Movie Musical, Modern Movement, Black and White Film, and Satire to explore the
complexities of navigating the cognitive dissonance of modern life. Luke Risher, 16, is in his fourth year
at Shadow, and he says that Paper Trail “looks at how the things that happen are framed by how the
events are communicated. By using different lenses, we are able to better see and understand what is
happening around us.”
Paper Trail runs approximately 60 minutes and tickets are $10.00. Tickets can be purchased at
www.yesandcamp.org or www.fringearts.com.
Shadow Company works all year long with the Yes! And… Collaborative Arts staff on the craft of theatremaking and focuses on providing Company members with the on and off stage experience to produce
plays, dances, performance art, and even more. Each year, Shadow produces a show for the Philadelphia
FringeArts Festival. This show, as many Shadow shows have done, is an artistic piece built from a
teenager’s point of view about various events that have recently occurred and impact their world.
Shadow is not only an outlet for artistic expression, but an opportunity for high school students from all
over the Philadelphia area to take on leadership positions and further their artistic training through
hands-on job experience with professional artists.
The Yes! And… Collaborative Arts staff is comprised of talented teaching artists that work with Shadow
Company to make their vision come to life. Natalie Hann, the Shadow Company Director, is a graduate
of Eastern University’s Musical Theater Program. Hann has been working with Yes! And… Collaborative
Arts for the last ten years and she says “It’s always an adventure developing a show with them
[Shadow]. You never know where it will lead. It’s interesting how in our experience with this show it is
evident that across people’s ethnicities, cultures, and generations there is always a unifying factor of
hope.”
Yes! And… Collaborative Arts Artistic Director and resident playwright, Brooke Sexton, has been working
with Shadow for the last six months leading workshops and brainstorming ideas to develop the
characters and plot of Paper Trail. Heather McBride, is assisting Shadow through exercises expanding on
improvisation, character development, and team building. Heather has also been heavily involved in
other YACA programs, currently serving as Summer Theatre Camp director. She has also had roles in
YACA’s Winter Sort Of Thing production. Darius Howard, a graduate of Temple University with a degree
in Film, has artistically assisted in developing various pieces across multimedia platforms. It is his first
year working with YACA, and he has been a great addition to Shadow as well as our Summer Imagination
and Theatre Camps.
About Yes! And… Collaborative Arts
Yes! And… Collaborative Arts works with children and youth from across Philadelphia in the collaborative
and imaginative arts through Summer Theatre Camps, the After School Group, teen Shadow Company,
and the Winter and Summer Sort of Thing programs.
About the Fringe Festival
The 2016 Fringe Festival, presented by FringeArts, is a 16-day-long performing arts celebration taking
over Philadelphia September 9th-24th and boasting hundreds of performances by local, national and
international artists. The party continues every night with FringeArts' Late Night programming in its
beautiful venue on the Delaware waterfront - which houses the La Peg restaurant and bar, as well as a
spectacular outdoor beer garden. FringeArts amplifies the cultural vibrancy of Philadelphia year-round
by presenting the most cutting edge, world-class performances from all over the world, cultivating local
arts innovators, and creating a fun atmosphere for artists and art lovers alike to socialize, converse, and
strengthen Philadelphia's artistic community.