Past Projects
Fifteen Cents (Fall 2008)
I applaud the work of all of the ensemble members. On November 14th and 16th, 2008 the ensemble brought Fifteen Cents to the Little Theatre. Fifteen Cents is a performance ethnography generated from the Performance Ensemble’s collection of stories from their everyday work lives. Performance ethnography is a research process that explores important social issues through the interrogation of everyday life experience. After collecting interviews and writing personal narratives the ensemble created this script. These stories are an honest portrayal of the class struggles that encompass and frame social interaction in the Los Angeles area. For the final scene/s of our show we used a modified version of Forum Theatre, which is a Theater of the Oppressed technique created by Brazilian director, writer and playwright, Augusto Boal.
The truly amazing component of Performance Ensemble is that each of us gets to explore our otherwise undiscovered creative talents, or cultivate the talents we already cherish. Performance Ensemble is a unique collaborative effort. Each member has a voice, a say, and adds to the import of our shows. Performance Ensemble is dedicated to cultivating social justice, tapping into social issues that matter to the Ensemble, and to the larger community. Our current concerns, not far off from your own, are focused on socioeconomic status. Our current class system, especially in this state of economic stress, impacts each fiber of society both systematically and personally.
We welcome new members at any time and encourage student creativity, participation, and input. If you would like to join us for the Spring semester, please contact me. We would love to hear your voice.
Dr. Jeanine Mingé
Director of the Performance Ensemble
jeanine.minge@csun.edu
Click here to view the performance