In the Footprint was born from the Civilians' 2008 project, Brooklyn at Eye Level, in which the troupe conducted interviews with residents, business owners, politicians and civic organizations in Brooklyn neighborhoods, including Fort Greene, Boreum Hill, Downtown Brooklyn, Crown Heights, Park Slope and Prospect Heights. Workshops were then held in 2008 at the Brooklyn Lyceum.
Civilians founding artistic director Steve Cosson (Gone Missing, This Beautiful City) directs and co-authored the work with Jocelyn Clarke. In the Footprint features music by Civilians associate artist and composer Michael Friedman (Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson).
The production will run through Dec. 11 at the Irondale Center, which is located two blocks from the Atlantic Yards, the proposed real estate project that would erect high-rise commercial and residential buildings in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, as well as a basketball stadium for the New Jersey Nets. The project has met with both resistance and support from community members and public officials.
The cast includes Matthew Dellapina ((I Am) Nobody's Lunch), Greg McFadden (The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial), Colleen Werthmann (Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson), Billy Eugene Jones (Passing Strange), Donnetta Lavinia Grays (In The Next Room) and Simone Moore.
In the Footprint, according to the Civilians, "will chronicle the conflicts surrounding the largest land development project in Brooklyn's history. This lively theatrical production is inspired by interviews with the real-life players in the controversy, representing many different perspectives: residents of Prospect Heights and Fort Greene, political leaders such as Letitia James and Marty Markowitz, members of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, union members, and project supporters such as ACORN's Bertha Lewis." The Civilians have also presented the extended Off-Broadway production of Gone Missing and Paris Commune as part of the Public Theater's Public LAB series.
Tickets to In the Footprint can also be purchased as part of the Xpass, which allows theatregoers custom subscription access to productions by The Civilians, The Talking Band, The Rude Mechs and The Exchange. Visit Xpass.
For single tickets, priced $35, visit Irondale. The Irondale Center is located at 85 South Oxford Street in Brooklyn.
