On the weekend of the anniversary of the Columbine shootings, Open Theatre Project and Moms Demand Action are teaming up to present a staged reading of “Natural Shocks” by Lauren Gunderson in Jamaica Plain. This reading is part of a national campaign of theater activism against gun violence and proceeds from this event will go to Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action.
The JP reading will be on April 22nd at St. John's Episcopal Church at 3 pm and is starring Lydia Jane Graeff and directed by Lynda Bachman. This new one-woman tour-de-force play starring Lydia Jane Graeff and directed by Lynda Bachman bursts to life when we meet a woman waiting out an imminent tornado in her basement. She overflows with quirks, stories, and a final secret that puts the reality of guns in America in your very lap. The play is part confessional, part stand up, and part reckoning.
Massachusetts Moms will have a table and will also participate in a panel discussion after the performance. A special focus will be given to the work being done locally and ways to get involved. Massachusetts elected officials may join the panel.
There will also be a reflective art-making session, in which the audience can draw or write in response to the play on blank postcard sized cards. These cards will become postcards with messages on the opposite side, sent via a mail-in campaign to lobby for Extreme Risk Protection Orders, and before mailing, they will be displayed together to create a collage of images reflecting peoples' reactions to the play.
Please RSVP by clicking here and here is a pay-what-you-can option to support the event. The JP reading will be on Sunday, April 22nd at St. John's Episcopal Church (1 Roanoke Ave.) at 3 pm. Learn more at TheOpenTheatre.com #OTPNaturalShocks.