Archive: Arts & Entertainment

Civic Ensemble continues work on their 2014 community-based play, Safety, which explores community police-relations. Every year, Civic Ensemble recruits a group of community members to develop, create, and perform an original play about a topic of importance to the community. The topic of the company's next production is community-police relations and how these relationships can both help and hinder our cohesion as a community.

The first step in this process is a series of story circles, individual interviews and an online survey available for both civilians and law enforcement. During a story circle the group will be given a prompt related to the topic of community-police relations and each individual will have a chance to share if they want to. This is a chance for civilians to share their experiences. Civic Ensemble has been conducting circles for the past six months at various locations in Ithaca. All participants can request that their stories remain anonymous.

The production will utilize several theatre-making tools to empower community members in the creation of theatre that is vital and relevant to their neighbors here in Ithaca.

A participant of last years’ production of Parent Stories said of the experience: “The focus on a theme that resonates in all of our lives brought us together and allowed us to explore how the process of parenting (and being parented) impacts each of us individually and as a community.”

Civic Ensemble works to create an environment in which the community can examine different points of view without judgment. This project seeks to use collaboratively created storytelling to address the divisions in our community with regard to policing and public safety.  Safety is led by Civic’s Director of Civic Engagement, Sarah K. Chalmers, and Artistic Director, Godfrey L. Simmons, Jr.

Upcoming story circles for civilians are:

• Monday, May 12 from 6pm-8pm at South Side Community Center - Sponsor Multicultural Resource Center and South Side Community Center
• Wednesday, May 14 from 6pm-8m at GIAC
• Sunday, May 18 from 1:30-3:30 at 518 W. Seneca Street

The May Story Circle Series will be followed with two Community Readings in June. On Tuesdays, June 17th and 24th from 7pm-9pm at the Kitchen Theatre Company, there will be an opportunity for everyone, civilians and law enforcement, to come together and hear a selection of stories that have been told during the project thus far. Those who attend will also have the chance to weigh in on what could be included in the play.


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