AN UNFLINCHING REIMAGINING OF 12 ANGRY MEN SET TO HIT THE STAGE IN NEWARK’S THEATER IN THE PARK
12 Mo' Angry Men
written and directed by TaNisha Fordham
WHEN: July 23 & 30, August 6 & 13, 2021; each production is scheduled to begin at 7PM
WHERE: Newark's Theater in the Park, Mulberry Commons Park in Newark, directly in front of the Prudential Center
TICKETS: Sponsored by the city of Newark, the event is free and open to the public
Tickets can be reserved HERE
Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs, blankets, food, etc., and involvement with local food trucks is tentatively scheduled, as well. The production is excited to bring theater to the city in an impactful and safe way.
As part of the city's Summer Fun Events, this new, community-based, unapologetic, and educational theater troupe—in a city well known for its arts community but not often acknowledged for the impact that said community has on national and world culture, Fordham is determined to forge a path for theater creatives and audiences fearlessly.
12 Mo' Angry Men, the story of 11 black jurors and 1 white juror deliberating on the guilt or innocence of a white police officer who shot and killed a black teen, is the new and timely reimagining of 12 Angry Men, a breakout 1954 (play)/1957 (film) by Reginald Rose.
Written
and directed by TaNisha Fordham (co-producer of the 2018 Oscar Nominated My
Nephew Emmett) and produced by Enlightened Visions, the production was a part
of Fordham's continual attempt at curating art as resistance.
12 Mo' Angry Men was written at the height of the 2020
civil unrest that broke forth in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, Ahmaud
Arbery, and Breonna Taylor, as well as the dawn of the COVID pandemic. Through 12 Mo, Fordham explores the many themes with which so many of us constantly
wrestle: identity, religion, health and wellness, politics, mental health, how
we address national/international crisis, policing policies (particularly in
minority and underrepresented communities), and the American system of justice.
With a cast of colorful characters—15 men and women—all extreme personalities, all outspoken (or decidedly muted), and all
unabashedly authentic, this 80 minute-long production is quick-paced
and packed to the brim.
The cast of 12 Mo' is slated to do a filmed production of
this piece later in the summer, after the wrap of the staged run. Additionally,
the production has been chosen for a run with NYC's Fall/WinterFest with
more details coming, pending the reopening of theaters throughout Manhattan but
not before an incomparable city of Newark debut.
For more information visit: www.enlightenedvisions.org for regular updates.
Trailers: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIbVyiajlDztzx9ZxM0B1f31io2dAs9GR