the Art of Social Justice

12:30-1:15pm Amplify Poetry Readings

In the wake of the tragic death of Nex Benedict, the Red Bank Theatre for Young Audiences of the UMCRB felt the need to celebrate and uplift the voices of young trans folx and developed Amplify. Amplify features readings by young actors from the RBTYA company featuring original poems from two anthologies: Growing Up Trans and The Poetry on Our Arms. We hope that Amplify will be a moving, empowering and affirming program.

1:30-2:30pm Exploring Identity: Reimagining Shakespeare

Shakespeare may have begun to write his early works almost 500 years ago, but that does not mean we cannot relate to his storytelling in our 21st century classrooms. In this workshop led by Garden State Equality’s Director of Education and Youth Development Justine Evyn Saliski, we will work through the 8-point story arc and gain knowledge on how we can amplify and uplift our students intersecting identities through the lens of both Shakespeare and social justice to reimagine tales of The Bard. Join us as we look at Shakespeare in a way that can not only relate to our students, but ourselves as well. While educators can gain Professional Development credit for attending, this discussion is free and open to the public.

This event is offered as a collaboration between Two River Theater, Red Bank Theatre for Young Audiences of the UMCRB and Garden State Equality.