Big things have small beginnings, especially for these child playwrights.
Professional actors and directors will stage shows written by fifth graders from Bushwick’s P.S. 123 — and just because these wordsmiths are little doesn’t mean their ideas aren’t huge.
“They’re mostly experiencing story-telling through film so a lot of their ideas are epic, spanning years, battling natural disasters, riding ships that are thrown by tsunamis,” said Jeremy Pickard, captain of the Superhero Clubhouse — the group that will present the children’s scripts at the Bushwick Starr on April 28 and 29. “There are lots of journeys, lots of adventures, lots of explosions.”
The collaboration of young and old began in January, when the Bushwick theater joined forces with the Superhero Clubhouse — a troupe known for its environmentally minded performances — and offered a series of workshops for P.S. 123 kids.
Environmental experts gave the children lessons on everything green, from global warming to littering, while experienced thespians schooled the kids on the nitty-gritty of theater.
Once the kids learned their stage-rights from their stage-lefts, they crafted creative works that proving once and for all that there are no small plays, merely small playwrights.
“They take those limitations and run with them as far as they can go,” said Pickard. “They really embraced the freedom when it wasn’t this strict school structure.”
Big Green Theater at the Bushwick Starr [207 Starr Street Brooklyn, NY 11237 (718) 306-2370] April 28, 7 pm and 4 pm. April 29, 4 pm. Tickets $12. Free for Bushwick residents and kids under 18. Visit www.thebushwickstarr.org
