FIRST GENERATION ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCES
Mother Tongue FIRST GENERATION ENSEMBLE (2022-2025)
Mother Tongue is inspired by the lived experiences of First Generation ensemble members, their families and communities who are from Congo/Tanzania, Bhutan/Nepal, South Sudan/Darfur, Holyoke, and Springfield, Massachusetts. The 90 minute performance weaves together theater, movement, music, dance, and stories in Arabic, Swahili, Nepali, Spanish, and English. Mother Tongue incorporates themes of diaspora, culture, identity, language, education, hypermasculinity, transphobia, xenophobia, the school-to-prison pipeline, personal liberation, and revolution.
Authors and ensemble members have included: Entsar "Star” Abdelrahman, Montaser Yagoub Abdelrahman, Charlétte Magdalena Marrero, Monisha Gurung, Julita Hasani, Moise Jackobo, Iliana “Lali" Quiles-Torres. Co-directed by Julie Lichtenberg, Lesley Farlow, and Iyawna Burnett. Ensemble support, James Arana. Lighting design, Brenda Cortina and Carlie Newman, sound design, Tyler Gorman and Tony Silva, and original music composition by I-SHEA Shaikly.
Stand Tall Mi Gente! / My People! FIRST GENERATION ENSEMBLE (2019-2020)
"The performance by these young artist/activists is brimming with energy and imagination, a dance of memory and hope performed with honesty, humor and fluid artistry." —Chris Rohmann, Stagestruck, Valley Advocate, February 10, 2020
In Stand Tall, Mi Gente!/ Stand Tall, My People! this unique high-energy intergenerational ensemble takes on the intersections of personal and political and tackles vital themes of family, misogyny, homophobia, believing in your own voice, and the power of speaking out.
The ensemble includes Joalis Ayala, Keiry Heath, Justice Sostre Garcia, and Chiino Rios. Ensemble support, James Arana. Directed by Julie Lichtenberg with support from I-SHEA Shaikly.
t e n d e r n e s s, FIRST GENERATION ENSEMBLE (2016-2018)
t e n d e r n e s s is a multi-lingual, physical theater piece that contrasts the dehumanization at the core of all violence with the eternal power of human tenderness and connection. Inspired by events in Guinea, West Africa, Darfur, and the US, tenderness incorporates ensemble members’ experiences with war, street violence, racism, the school-to-prison pipeline, police brutality, and mass incarceration, in contrast with humanities capacity for tenderness and connection. The authors and ensemble members originate from Haiti, Burundi/Rwanda, Guinea, South Sudan, Puerto Rico and the U.S., and the piece incorporates Arabic, Mandingo, Kirundi, Haitian Creole, French, Spanish and English. Ensemble members have included: Adam Abdelrahman, Uwizeyimana Angelique, Tyler Brown Veronica Israël, Terrell Jones, Haja Sidime, Luke Bosco, Phoenix Rios. Tenderness was directed by Julie Lichtenberg with choreography support by Lesley Farlow. Iyawna Burnett, Elsa Menendez, and Sabrina Hamilton consulted on the script. Ensemble support, James Arana. Sound design by Tony Silva and original music by Charles Neville.
Fo n' ale (we must go), FIRST GENERATION ENSEMBLE (2013-2014)
fo n' ale (we must go) is a visual poem that embodies the melancholy of leaving. The piece incorporates dance, music, poetry, and seven languages: Kirundi, Nepali, Haitian Creole, Amharic, French, Spanish, and English. Eight travelers originating from around the world have left their homelands for different reasons and find themselves traveling the same path. A waking dreamscape in which past, present, and future are interchangeable. Memories infuse their dreams, and time obscures the shape of memories.
fo n' ale suggests how there are moments in our lives when the impact of experience is crystalized, and carried forward in time with such vividness that the past becomes present, and continues to live within us. These moments sustain as fiercely guarded memories, sources of power, as they shape and nourish identity, infusing all that we carry with us into the future.
The eight ensemble members, who currently live in Springfield, Massachusetts, originate from Nepal, Haiti, Burundi/Tanzania, Puerto Rico, Ethiopia and the United States. Uwizeyimana Angelique, Iyawna Burnett, Benjamin “Bush” Christopher, Sosina Erkailo, Laeticia Israël Veronica Israël, Gita Koirala, Chiino Rios. Ensemble support, James Arana. Directed by Julie Lichtenberg and Lesley Farlow.
Ripple Effect FIRST GENERATION ENSEMBLE (2010-2011)
Ripple Effect is based in the personal narratives of First Generation Ensemble, a group of young adults living in Springfield, MA who transform the stage into a meeting point for their diverse lives that span four languages, Kirundi, Nepali, English, and Spanish, and three continents. Through poetry, movement, monologue and storytelling, the audience is transported from Springfield, MA to a U.S. army base, through a refugee camp in Tanzania, to witness a Nepali family’s struggle for recognition as citizen’s in the US. Ripple Effect is a powerfully-crafted means of sharing the strengths and struggles of the ensemble members’ memories, family and cultural stories, fantasy worlds, and dreams for the future.
Ripple Effect connects the lives of Springfield youth to global events, such as the genocide and child soldiers of Rwanda/Burundi, and ethnic cleansing in Bhutan, while also addressing local issues such as, addiction, HIV, foster care, and homophobia. Ripple Effect was directed by Julie Lichtenberg, Lesley Farlow, Elsa Menendez and Julissa Rodriguez. Ensemble support, James Arana.
Through the eye of bakok, FIRST GENERATION ENSEMBLE (2008-2009)
through the eye of bakok - Imagine a group of people traveling, and all the planes are mysteriously grounded. They are stuck for an indefinite amount of time at the airport, either at the beginning their journey, or on their way home. Imagine that you can hear their inner thoughts and memories, and listen in on their conversations with the fellow travelers.
Co-authored and performed by Ben Bland, Denzel Coleman-Paulin, Shareef Ibrahim, Emily Laufer, Abraham Lual, and Tyrone Polk, Yissel Rosario, Kinnethia Tolson, and Itoro Udofia, with origins from South Sudan, Dominican Republic, Nigeria, and Springfield, MA. Contributing to the script and choreography Jon Lopez, Amina Jordan-Mendez, Parath Teng, and Nakeah Norwood. Co-directed by Julie Lichtenberg, Elsa Menendez, I-SHEA, and Nancy Tolson, with choreography support by choreographer Lesley Farlow. Sound design- Tony Silva and set, props and original artwork by Carla Wojczuk. Group facilitation and support James Arana, Beth Mattison
Bakok is a Dinka word meaning, “One who must leave one’s home and travel to another place.”
Selected Performances 2000-2025
First Generation and Performance Project Ensembles
COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
Bowker Auditorium, UMass Amherst
Carney Auditorium, Furcolo Hall, UMass Amherst
Augusta Savage Gallery, New Africa House, UMass Amherst
American International College
Hampshire College – 2024, 2015, 2013, 2011
Springfield College, 2013, 2011, 2006
Holyoke Community College
Amherst College
Greenfield Community College
Holyoke Community College
Bunker Hill Community College, Boston
Springfield Technical Community College
Westfield University
Mount Holyoke College
The Elms
Trinity College, Hartford, CT
HIGH SCHOOLS AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS
Commerce, Central, and Renaissance High Schools, Springfield
Easthampton High School
Wilbraham & Monson Academy
Holyoke High School
Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter School
Turners Falls High School
Northampton High School
Chestnut Academy Middle School
Lt. Clayre P. Sullivan School, Holyoke
Peck Middle School
Rebecca M Johnson School
Upward Bound at Northfield Mount Herman
Brattleboro High School, Brattleboro, VT
FESTIVALS
Ashtar International Youth Theater Festival 2021, Palestine (virtual)
Revolutions International Theater Festival, Albuquerque, NM, 2005, 2014, 2017
Ko Festival of Performance, Amherst, MA, 2011, 2012, 2016
Franklin County Pride Festival, Greenfield, MA
Caribbean, Blunt Park, Springfield, MA
THEATERS
Shea Theater, Turners Falls, MA
Bombyx, Florence, MA
Northampton Center for the Arts
City Stage, Springfield, MA
Blue Room @ CitySpace, Easthampton, MA
Academy of Music, Northampton, MA
School of Contemporary Dance and Thought, Northampton, MA
Thornes APE 3rd Floor Performance Space, Northampton, MA
PRIVATE PERFORMANCES
Regional Employment Board, Springfield, MA
Peace Corps Gathering in private home, Springfield, MA
CONFERENCES AND SUMMITS
2021 Online Great Labor Arts Exchange (Virtual)
NAMEN (North American Men Engage) Conference- “Intersectionality And Decolonization”
Evolve Without Borders: An Intergenerational Gathering of Global Theater Artists
6th International Digital Storytelling Conference, UMASS
Annual Healthy Men And Boys Summit, Holyoke Community College
Youth Leadership Forum “Healthy Men And Boys” Treehouse Community
Pa’Lante! A panel Presentation Celebrating Local Latina/o Activism- Amherst College
YES! Youth Conference, Basketball Hall of Fame
Mass Cultural Council Event, Wistariahurst Museum, Holyoke, MA
COMMUNITY
Northampton Trial Court, Northampton, MA
Cultural Awareness Award Ceremony, State Probation Training Facility, Clinton, MA
Hampshire Jail and House Of Corrections, Northampton, MA
Caribbean African American Athletic Social Club, Springfield, MA
Springfield Citywide Virtual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration
Communities That Care Presentation, Selections Performance/First Generation Panel, Greenfield Cable TV
Westfield Youth Service Center (DYS Youth Facility)
Department of Youth Services Annual Showcase, Boston
City Hall, Centering and Celebrating Cultures in Health, Springfield, MA
United Congregational Church of Holyoke, Holyoke, MA
The Care Center, Holyoke, MA
Chicopee TV Studio
New England Public Radio Springfield Grand Opening
Springfield Jazz and Roots Festival 2022, 2016, 2014
Flash Mob, Downtown Springfield 2014
Campaign Nonviolence 2014 - September 21st Street Performance, Springfield
Paul Robeson Social Justice Conference, Boston
Edwards Church Northampton
Unitarian Society, Amherst
South Congregational Church
PRESENTATIONS AND WORKSHOPS
Amherst High School, Summer ELL community building and Leadership training
DYS Westfield Youth Detention Center
Amplify Youth Voices! An International Livestream Workshop, North America MenEngage (NAMEN)
2021 virtual NAMEN Round Table for International audience
Springfield College Dance Department
The Care Center, Holyoke, MA
Upward Bound, Northfield Mount Hermon (2x)
Youth Action Coalition, Amherst
Springfield Public Library
Our Place' Holyoke Shelter
Smith College
Hampshire College
University of New Mexico Theater Department
High Meadows Youth Facility, CT
Student Bridges of UMASS
Woolman Hill Quaker Center
Hope and Inspiration Performing Arts Festival, Roxbury Community College, Boston
WW Johnson Life Center Youth Program
Springfield Substance Abuse Forum
Gateway Regional Middle school, CT
Franklin County Youth Action Corps
River Valley Academy, Holyoke, MA
Marlboro College (video, lecture, discussion)
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
California College of Arts & Crafts
Hampshire Jail and House Of Corrections
CO-SPONSORED EVENTS
Nepali/Bhutanese Cultural Festivals #1 and #2, Springfield, MA