World-renowned spoken word poet Marc Bamuthi Joseph will perform at the Leeward Community College Theatre on November 23 at 8 p.m. using his signature art form of “choreopoetry,” a highly theatrical and mesmerizing blend of spoken word and dance movement.
The Spoken World is a three-part performance that articulates the story of achieving manhood in the United States through the lens of hip-hop, global travel and urban environmental health. The performance begins with an excerpt of the award winning Word Becomes Flesh, which examines pregnancy through the eyes of fatherhood. Part two, taken from the 2008 premiere of the break/s, is a travel diary across planet hip-hop. The actor recalls voyages to Senegal, Haiti, Bosnia and Japan, examining the way hip-hop culture has transformed the perception of American citizenship across the world. In part three, Joseph performs the first section of his 2011 premiere red black & GREEN: a blues. This section uses poetry and movement to connect the dots between a mourning mother at a festival for life in Chicago and a motherless vocalist learning about the environment in Sudan.
More on Joseph
Marc Bamuthi Joseph is one of America’s vital voices in performance, arts education, and artistic curation. In the fall of 2007, Joseph graced the cover of Smithsonian Magazine after being named one of America’s Top Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences. He is the artistic director of the 7-part HBO documentary “Russell Simmons presents Brave New Voices” and an inaugural recipient of the United States Artists Rockefeller Fellowship (2006), which annually recognizes 50 of the country’s “greatest living artists”. Joseph was recently nominated for a 2013 New York Dance & Performance (Bessie) Award in the category of Outstanding Production (of a work stretching the boundaries of a traditional form) for red, black & Green: a blues.
A gifted and nationally acclaimed educator and essayist, he has lectured at more than 200 colleges and universities, been a popular commentator on National Public Radio, and has carried adjunct professorships at Stanford University, Lehigh University, Mills College and the University of Wisconsin. He is the co-founder of Life is Living, a national series of one day festivals designed to activate under-resourced parks and affirm peaceful urban life through hip hop arts and focused environmental action. He currently serves as Director of Performing Arts at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.
Ticket Information
Tickets are $30 general; $20 military/seniors and UH students, faculty and staff; $15 Leeward CC students and children 12 and under.
Purchase tickets online or call 808-455-0385. Tickets will also be available at the box office an hour before show time.
