At noon, this coming Saturday, June 5, a celebration is happening in Brush Park, Downtown Flint, as the Flint Mural Plays kicks off the Flint Rep Summer 2021 season.
The Flint Mural Plays are 25 mico audio plays from playwrights across the country, each corresponding with a different mural in Flint. It’s part of a partnership with the Flint Repertory Theatre and the Flint Public Art Project. All 25 mural plays will be launched live on Saturday, June 5, on the PixelStix mobile app and online at FlintRep.org.
The playwrights include some of the most exciting theatre artists of our time, including Lauren Gunderson (I and You), Greg Kotis (Urinetown), Craig Lucas (The Light in the Piazza) and Douglas Lyons (Chicken and Biscuits).
From June 5 through August 31, audience members are invited to listen anytime to the short audio plays for free on the PixelStix mobile app or online at FlintRep.org while exploring the murals around Flint. Then, at noon each Saturday in June, a community event is planned, featuring live performances and group tours in a different Flint neighborhood.
Michael Lluberes, Flint Repertory Theatre’s producing artistic director, says he is excited to bring this unique collaboration to the city.
“This exciting and ambitious new programming is all outside of the box and our building. We are looking for ways to translate our work into new mediums and bring theatre directly to the community. I want Flint residents to experience parts of the city they might not have been to in a while. I also want out-of-town visitors to experience Flint from the advantage of what we offer, not what they might have heard in the news media.”
“When I first heard about the idea, I knew it was a good one,” says Joseph Schipani, the Flint Public Art Project executive director.
“When we started the Flint Mural Project in 2018, we received lots of attention. Then we expanded the project in 2019 and brought in more artists, and created more unique murals. It was exciting. But then spring of 2020 came, and everything closed down. This idea is giving new life to our amazing murals and the city of Flint.”
The Flint Mural Plays will also debut audio plays by Mando Alvarado (Post No Bills), Hunter Bell (Title of Show) & Ebony Vines, Kyle Clark, singer-songwriter “Danielle Ate The Sandwich,” Destiny Dunn, Rebecca Gilman (Spinning Into Butter), Derek Gregor & Selda Sahin (GRIND), Harvey, Kenn Hopkins Jr., Jenni Lamb, Leah Maddrie, Alex Moggridge (The Boatman), Eliana Pipes, Emilio Rodriguez, Nandita Shenoy (Washer/Dryer), Harrison David Rivers (Broadbend, Arkansas), Josh Wilder (Wrong River), as well as University of Michigan Flint student playwrights Taylor Boes, David Guster, Olivia Maxwell-Cook, Andrea Orpinel and Enrique Vargas. The audio plays are directed by Janet Haley, Kenn Hopkins Jr. and Michael Lluberes.
The following events are planned every Saturday in June:
Saturday, June 5 — 12:00 pm Downtown Launch Event (Brush Park) – Flint Mural Plays Launch: All 25 mural plays launched live on PixelStix mobile app, listening devices and online at FlintRep.org.
Saturday, June 12 —12:00 pm Carriage Town Event (Flint City Hard Cider Co.)
Saturday, June 19 – 12:00 pm North Side Event (The Neighborhood Engagement Hub)
Saturday, June 26 – 12:00 pm East Side Event (Latinx Center)
Flint Repertory Theatre is a professional, not-for-profit theatre located in Flint. It is a program of the Flint Institute of Music, along with the Flint School of Performing Arts and the Flint Symphony Orchestra.
For more information on Flint Rep’s reimagined season, FLINT REP OUTSIDE, and the Flint Mural Plays, contact The Ticket Center at 810-237-7333 or visit FlintRep.org.
FLINT REPERTORY THEATRE is a professional, not-for-profit theatre in the heart of Flint. The Rep’s commitment is to provide the city of Flint and surrounding communities with highly imaginative, thought-provoking theatre that is challenging, entertaining and inspiring for all ages. Flint Repertory Theatre is a Flint Institute of Music program, alongside the Flint School of Performing Arts and the Flint Symphony Orchestra. Through FIM, it receives partial funding from the Genesee County Arts Education and Enrichment Millage. The Rep is the recipient of a 2018 National Theatre Company Grant from The American Theatre Wing. www.flintrep.org.
