Forging Ahead Season: 2020-2021
Made possible by Season Benefactors Elizabeth and Joe LeVaca
Forging theater during a pandemic is an act of creative exploration. That is why we have chosen the exuberant sunflower to define our re-imagined Forging Ahead Season. Like this irrepressible flower, we are resisting the inclination to bow our heads in the face of strong headwinds. Instead, we are standing tall and following the sun as we invent new ways to forge theater and community in a time of physical isolation. Join us for this locally grown, livestreamed theater adventure!
Audience Talkbacks on YouTube
Earlier this season
LOCALLY SOURCED
Live Arts’ annual short play festival, written by local Charlottesville playwrights Sean Michael McCord, Ken Henry, Courtney Walker, Malcolm Aslett, Elizabeth Rose Fuller, Marty Moore, Nina Haigney, and Jenny Mead. Two original plays each night.
Click here to watch on YouTube!
LOST HOME, WIN HOME
“A Charlottesville native unpacks the events of the Rally that turned her hometown upside down” in this one-woman show by Shelby Marie Edwards.
Learn more about the show in the Digital Playbill and Study Guide, or by watching the LOST HOME, WIN HOME Talkback with playwright/solo performer Shelby Marie Edwards, director Ti Ames, and producer/stage manager Aiyana Marcus.
2020 Holiday Play 
IN HINDSIGHT, MAYBE GHOSTS WERE A BAD IDEA: A Holiday Play in Three Spirits is a totally original and completely zany twist on A Christmas Carol! Learn more in the Digital Playbill and check out behind-the-scenes photos of the cast and crew.
THE MOM JOURNALS 
Interwoven monologues tell the story of five mothers in different stages of motherhood in this new work by local playwright Courtney Jett Walker. Sponsored by The Caplin Foundation. Learn more in the Digital Playbill!
LET GO OF ME
March 25-27 at 8pm and March 28 at 2pm
An autobiographical play written and directed by Kelley Van Dilla exploring the tenuous relationship between a non-binary transgender child and their mother who has bipolar, while mirroring the many ways we both connect and disconnect with others during a pandemic.
WE ARE THE ONES WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR
May 20-22 at 8pm and May 23 at 2pm
An evening of storytelling, poetry, music, and dance celebrating unsung Black women freedom fighters throughout American history.
- Written and directed by Mariela Edwards
- Filmed and edited by Light House Studio
- Produced in partnership with Writers Remembered: A Literary Collective of Black Women
- Sponsored by Quirk Hotel
LIVE ARTS ON YOUTUBE
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Virtual Studio Visits
Join our host (and beloved Box Office Manager) Darryl Smith as he interviews local Charlottesville artists about their creative process, current projects, and more! Watch here:
Pre-Season Sneak Peek: Special Guest Jocelyn Nicole Johnson
October: Special Guest Sarah Boyts Yoder
November: Special Guest Edwina Herring
Radio Plays
Writers, actors, and Foley artists (sound effect creators) find new and fun ways to present acoustic performances in Live Arts’ spin on this hundred-year-old art form. Watch here:
WE TALK TO BUILDINGS: Local Actors Playing Local Spaces
- Written and directed by Gabriel Komisar
- Co-produced with Gorilla Theater Productions
ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA: IN SPACE!
- Adapted and directed by Alexander Bulova
Live Arts Coffeehouse
Join us: Friday, November 20 at 7pm on YouTube Live!
- Hosted by Shelby Marie Edwards
- Performances by Amrita Shankar, Johnny Butcher, Monica Edwards, Nathaniel Star
October Coffeehouse: Four County Players TAKEOVER!
- Hosted by Linda Zuby and Edward Warwick White
- Performances by Shannon Montague, Doug Schneider (accompanied by Greg Harris), Kristen Bell (accompanied by Kristin Baltes), Mariko Schaper Doktor, and Perry Medlin.
- Hosted by Chante Mack
- Performances by Courtney Jacobs, Rob Craighurst, Tanya Kae, and Joshua Tucker.
Foundry Fridays Workshop
Join us: Friday, November 27 at 7pm on YouTube Live!
ILLUMINATION: An Introduction to Lighting Design with Jackson Key
Paper-mâché bugs with Jum Jirapan
- Click here for materials and instructions
- Click here for mask base instructions
- Printable mask template 1
- Printable mask template 2
ILLUMINATION: An Intro to Lighting Design with Jackson Key
Additional 2020-2021 Sponsors:
Box Office Sponsors Elizabeth and Joe LeVaca
Film and Editing Sponsor Light House Studio
Design and Development Partner Convoy
Media Sponsor WTJU 91.1FM
Scene Shop Sponsor Karen Pape
Pay What You Can Sponsors:
Allison Partners
Latitude 38
Strauss Construction
Ting
