This Every 28 Hours Plays podcast was recorded May 15, 2021 by Calling Up Justice and edited by Gifted Sounds in 2023. In this project, led by Karina Ithier and Sabina Unni, we recorded four of the Every 28 Hours Plays in 2021 as part of an experiment in audio theater. Inspired by the ever expanding death tolls in Gaza recently Claudia Alick led a quick turnaround publishing process so we could share these important ideas. Thanks to Jesenia for transcribing this episode for accessibility and creating the visual image for this post. We are so grateful to everyone involved in manifesting this recording and sharing it.
This episode includes a reading of Equal Parts by Jake Margolin and a moving conversation with a diverse room of theater practitioners. They called into the digital recording studio from California, Palestine, Texas, Israel, Washington, Minnesota, New York, and Oregon. This minute long play, features verbatim text from Ferguson residents who were helped by Palestinians during the uprising following the extrajudicial killing of Michael Brown by officers of the state. The discussion is around 75 minutes and touches on the Black Lives matter movement, racial and ethnic justice, resisting genocide, the power of theater and how our movements are connected.
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This podcast includes recommendations of individuals and institutions made by participants. We have not vetted any institutions or individuals and they are from 2021. We recommend you take advice on specific people or institutions from those most impacted today.
What is The Every 28 Hours Plays?
A study in 2012 found a black person was extrajudicially killed by vigilante, security guard, or the police in the United States. This statistic was immediately contested, and the country is still embroiled with addressing a problem it struggles to acknowledge. Inspired by the conversation we needed to have this project was developed. Currently produced by Claudia Alick and Calling Up Justice, The Every 28 Hours Plays project was originally developed with The Oregon Shakespeare Festival and The One-Minute Play Festival with over one-hundred artistic collaborators across the country.
Collaborators include Tony award-winning artists, nationally respected theater artists, social justice activists, family members directly affected by police violence, politicians, cultural organizers, and law enforcement. The project consists of over seventy short plays that reflect the current civil rights movement, and tools to help your community address these issues, grow empathy, and become healthier. We offer the plays on a Pay What You Can model as part of our philosophy of radical generosity. Visit the website to learn more about thousands of lives touched in collaboration with arts organizations, colleges and universities, and businesses.