BY LUCIA MAURO
It’s the final run-through of Skeptics, the latest youth-generated
"body-phrased" performance piece from Free Street’s MadJoy
Theatrics, based at Pulaski Park in Bucktown. But this stream-of-consciousness
work performed by an eclectic ensemble of young artists well exceeds ordinary
teen issues, like dating and peer pressure.
These artists are exploring through movement, music and spoken text a dangerous curiosity about how far individuals can push themselves to the brink of death. In essence, Skeptics explores the paradox of how getting in touch with one’s mortality can allow one to more fully appreciate the gift of life.
Against a video-projected backdrop of the phrase, "I resist the impulse," a teenage boy contemplates smashing his car to escape a dysfunctional home life. Another girl starves herself, while others admit, "I’ve never had much purpose in my life" or "I want to do something violent to something." The show’s sub-theme addresses one girl’s desire to drop out of high school–not because she’s not interested in learning but because she believes the education system does not truly educate students about real-life issues.
Free Street’s teen arts programs, on the other hand, are all about tackling realities head-on through original performances that encompass immediate issues in the writer-performers’ lives.
"Even if I go on to study radiology or psychology in college," says ensemble member Melissa Pabon, 18, "I’ve learned how to work collaboratively with people and not to be so quick to judge them."
Free Street is the larger organization which was founded in 1969 with a goal of using the arts to help youth realize their full potential. Its projects include Arts Literacy and Parenteen Residencies.
But one of Free Street’s programs experiencing consistent growth is TeenStreet–a jobs program in theatre for low-income teens. TeenStreet, in turn, consists of three aspects: Summer Companies, teen groups based in Chicago Parks crafting original half-hour shows for children; PANG, a teen-curated performance series that joins experimental artists with teens in performances and workshops; and MadJoy Theatrics, the newly named year-round teen theatre ensemble that creates unconventional theatre pieces performed locally and taken on international tours.
Artistic director Ron Bieganski heads the combined movement-rhythmic-writing workshops and directs the shows, with Bryn Magnus overseeing the writing and directing the PANG coordinators. Anita Evans works closely with the young artists on all aspects of production and promotion. She is responsible for inaugurating MadJoy’s latest film/video sector.
But all of the artists generally resist titles and categories. And, while a clear process has emerged and the Free Street artists are now writing a book on that process, Bieganski is quick to note that the program taps into several multilayered intangibles.
"The name MadJoy encompasses the emotions you go through working with youth who have chaos in their lives," says Bieganski. "Our basic philosophy is about being energized, non-judgmental and in the moment. We’re taking the artists to a place where their creativity is opened up and boundless. We move from a physical place to find stillness in their minds."
Bieganski typically begins by putting participants in touch with their bodies–getting them to move and vocalize. A pouring out of thoughts on paper follows, and the teens are encouraged to write at the same time they are engaged in movement exercises with fellow ensemble members. Those works are later shaped into MadJoy’s signature "body-phrased" performances enhanced by expressionistic vocal soundscapes.
As 16-year-old Christine Gandia sums up, "We don’t just write poetry. We do poetry."
Robert Rodriguez, 19, points out that Free Street blurs the lines between, say, theatre and music and dance. "I’m interested in all kinds of performance," he enthuses. "Theatre to me is not acting–it’s moving and singing and other things. Being part of Free Street also has helped me sort out problems I’ve had in my life."
Bieganski–who has taken MadJoy Theatrics on tours throughout Germany and the Netherlands–is adamant about giving young artists the opportunity to create their own meaningful work, not a rehash of what they’re fed on TV, in movies or in the more traditional theatre.
"We’re an experimental laboratory," he continues. "We’re not taking ideas that have been done for decades. And we strongly promote collaboration with our audiences. Skeptics is still a work-in-progress. We premiere it in the spring and then conduct in-depth discussions with the audience. We continue to develop the work and re-open it in the fall after we make changes.
"If you’re asking your audience to come to theatre that’s not TV, you have to involve them in the creative process. Let’s not be like TV, and let’s discuss the damn thing."
He has pioneered a more imaginative and abstract yet hard-hitting style of multidisciplinary youth theatre. He fiercely avoids documentary-style theatre rooted in venting or therapy-inducing confessions. Bieganski, a former artistic associate at Steppenwolf Theatre, stresses that being involved in youth theatre is not a stepping-stone to bigger theatre projects; it’s a rewarding end in itself. Bieganski has served as Teen Street’s artistic director since 1995, and he has seen concrete results.
According to Bieganski, Teen Street eliminates the fear factor through its non-judgmental training and respects its young participants as artists. The teens do everything from creating their own shows (and the structures of those shows) to designing all promotional materials and producing/curating a year-round performance series.
"We’re teaching people to be inspired," states Bieganski. "We encourage individuality and confidence in their instincts."
Evans announced Free Street’s plans for developing a multidisciplinary arts center to be housed in a rehabbed warehouse on the city’s west or south side. The plan is in its earliest stages of development; a feasibility study is being conducted, with plans to open the center over the next three years.
"We’re thinking of a warehouse," explains Evans, "a place that’s kind of messy, where young artists can be free to paint and get dirty. I envision a student-run café and a center that encompasses the visual arts, video, theatre, music, dance and a social-service group. We got the idea when we were touring in Germany. They have these wonderful places where artists can congregate and collaborate."
For more information on Free Street, contact 773/772-7248 or visit www.freestreet.org.