December 6-12, 2021
The International Human Rights Arts Festival began in 2010 under the auspices of Amnesty International. It has now grown to an annual week-long event, offering hundreds of visual and performing artists the stage to showcase their work, share their stories and inspire social influencers, policy makers, cultural leaders and the general public to support their causes.
COVID Safety protocols at wild project
Upon entry all audience members must show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination. We welcome the NYC Covid Safe App and the New York State Excelsior Pass, which provides secure, digital proof of COVID-19 vaccination. For more information on Excelsior Pass, visit: https://epass.ny.gov.
To help us ensure a fast and efficient entry, we ask that guests using the Excelsior Pass Wallet app download the app in advance and log in prior to your visit so you have access to your documentation before arriving at the venue.
Audience members will be required to wear masks at all times within the theater. There will be no food or drink permitted within the theater.
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 12th, 3:30pm
POETRY, THEATRE AND DANCE)
Maggie Munday Odom: IHRAF 2021 Youth Fellow, Maggie Munday Odom, shares a powerful poem: "Untitled Poem for the 573," a found poem about the human rights violation that is capital punishment.
Jessica Litwak: Matriarch an outtake: “Matriarch” is a new piece about mothers who are world renowned and privately domestic, young and old, poetic and political, mothers across history, across borders, across languages, across disciplines, across classes and cultures. The play tells a variety of sometimes humorous and sometimes tragic stories that center around courageous generosity and fierce love. This short segment will focus on Jewish and Arabic matriarchs. Dr. Jessica Litwak is an actor, a playwright, drama therapist, creative coach, and international leader in the field of socially engaged theatre. She has taught, directed and performed in Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt, Israel, Turkey, India and throughout both Eastern and Western Europe. She is the founder and Artistic Director of the H.E.A.T. Collective, a core member of Theatre Without Borders, and a Fulbright Scholar.
Robin Hirsch: Robin Hirsch was born in London during the Blitz to German Jews who had fled Hitler. He is a former Oxford, Fulbright and English-Speaking Union Scholar, a two-time NYFA (New York Foundation for the Arts) Fellow, and the recipient of numerous awards for his contributions to the arts. But the titles of which he is proudest were self-bestowed: Minister of Culture/WineCzar/Dean of Faculty at the Cornelia Street Café in Greenwich Village which he founded in 1977 with two other artists and which New York City proclaimed "a culinary as well as a cultural landmark" in 1987. There, in addition to award-winning food and drink, he produced thousands of shows in every conceivable genre (and quite a few inconceivable ones) for over 40 years until vile landlords took over the building and forced Cornelia to close her doors. But she lives on in exile, with shows both on the road and in the air.
Philippe Garcesto: Pag-Asa Ng Bayani. Philippe offers a performance poetry piece that is an explosive celebration of identity and reclaiming my personal narrative. The Title is translated as “Hope of the Hero from Tagalog” and will be an exploration of my perspective as a Filipino-American Warrior Artist. Philippe Javier Garcesto is a Filipino-American Actor, Writer, Martial Artist, and Mixed Media Performance Artist. Most recently starred as the lead in a romantic comedy short film "Filipinos Get Some" hitting the film festival circuit in 2022. He has been a featured performer with Poetic People Power for 7 years writing and performing original performance poetry on topics such as Social Justice, Environmental Activism, and Human Rights. For more information about his work please visit philippegarcesto.com.
