LOW Is Selling Out! Kevin Powell Joins Talk on Hip Hop & Mental Health

January 10, 2008 admin Press Release 0

Thanks to YOU, LOW is on FIRE!

Opening Night: SOLD OUT!


There are 8 More Shows To See, Plus
3 Very Special Post Show Discussions
(including one with activist, writer KEVIN POWELL).
Scroll down for ALL details. Get your tickets TODAY!

LOW: Meditations Trilogy Pt 1

Conceived, written, and performed by RHA GODDESS

Directed and Developed by CHAY YEW


LIMITED RUN!
Through January 20, 2008

at The Public Theater | 425 Lafayette St.
New York, NY 1003 (bet. E.4th and Astor Place)



Admission: Only $15

(includes admission to post show discussions, scroll down for details)



Purchase tickets now at www.publictheater.org or call 212.967.7555

For special ticket offers, go to www.rhaworld.com/LOW-SpecialOffers


A multidisciplinary one-woman solo theater piece, LOW is conceived, written, and performed by performance/hip hop artist and social activist Rha Goddess. It is directed and developed by Chay Yew.

As part one of Rha’s The Meditations Trilogy, the show is a 75-minute dramatic exploration that asks “what is insanity?” and addresses the mythology, stigma, fear and confusion surrounding mental illness. Fusing poetry, music, prose, and movement, Rha Goddess transforms into a vibrant young woman named Lowquesha and chronicles an all too common journey through the mental health system. Part manifesto, part family history, and part spiritual evocation, this installation of The Meditations Trilogy is a call for understanding and positive change and asserts that achieving a state of well-being in this society is a revolutionary act!

With equal doses of laughter, outrage, and compassion, the show is disturbingly articulate and will challenge its audiences in ways not ventured before.

Performance Schedule: Now through Sunday, Jan. 20, 2008


Thu Sat Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu Sat Sun
10 12 13* 14** 15*** 16 17 19 20
Sold Out! 7pm 2pm 9:30pm 7pm 9:30pm 7pm 8:30pm 2pm

* Post Show Discussion Panel on Hip Hop Theater hosted by Clyde Valentin
** Dialogue with Special Guest Kevin Powell
*** Launch of the Hip Hop Mental Health Project
(scroll down for details on post-show discussions)

For Special Events, Visit www.rhaworld.com/LOW-SpecialEvents


LOW: Meditations Trilogy Part 1 is a co-production of Divine Dime Entertainment, Ltd. and Made in da Shade (NL). It is a part of the provocative line up for UNDER THE RADAR 2008, a twelve-day theater festival presented by The Public Theater (Artistic Director Oskar Eustis; Executive Director Mara Manus) and Producer Mark Russell. LOW premiered at Actor’s Theatre of Louisville in the 2006 Humana Festival of New American Plays.

The Future Aesthetics Artist Regrant (FAAR) program is a pilot national initiative to support individual artists and work that is emerging from the field of Hip-Hop arts/future aesthetics and is administered by the Hip-Hop Theater Festival (HHTF) with funding provided by the Ford Foundation.


For Additional Info, Visit

www.rhaworld.com • www.mappinternational.org • www.shade.nl • www.publictheater.org

“LOW” at The Public and
“Under The Radar 2008” Special Events
Celebrate the Launch of the

Hip Hop Mental Health Project

With Special Performances & Dialogues:

Monday, January 14
“Hip Hop Mental Health: Gang Bangers,

Iraq War Vets, and The Wellstone Act”

A Late/Night Post Show Dialogue between
RHA GODDESS and Activist, Writer KEVIN POWELL
(Q&A moderated by April R. Silver of AKILA WORKSONGS)

Show Time: 9:30pm SHARP (dialogue begins right after show!)

Columbine, Virginia Tech, ???. As the dust settles on the last “gone postal” tragedy and our traumatized troops stumble home from Iraq, this nation faces a poignant opportunity to examine the mental, emotional, and psychological state of its citizens. When we consider the reality of many urban youth of color the crisis exponentially increases. Whether the Hip Hop generation populates the corners of East NY, the corn fields of Iowa, or the back alleys of Baghdad, the drama is all too common. Join pioneer Hip Hop activists Rha Goddess and Kevin Powell as they contemplate both the crisis and opportunity that exists for this generation to join the revolution to “be WELL.”


Tuesday, January 15
The Hip Hop Mental Health Project
Research & Dialogue Study *
with DR. PETER FRAENKEL and City College Dept. of Psychology

Evening starts at 6:00pm SHARP

Founded by Rha and Dr. Peter Fraenkel, the Hip Hop Mental Health Project (HHMHP) seeks to shift the cultural paradigm of shame and alienation surrounding mental illness and satisfy society’s need for a SAFE place to confront the issue and obtain vital information. Through the integration of performance and research based dialogue, HHMHP intends to impact public discourse and values among urban communities (of color) in a way that educates about the signs, symptoms, and spiraling course of mental illness, and to explore possible solutions to the contributing life stressors of societal stigma and the difficulties of an overtaxed mental health system. HHMHP has a specific commitment to engaging young urban & low-income communities of color as they are the most detrimentally affected by the disparities in mental health diagnosis, treatment, and care.

All Post Show Discussions at The Public Theater
(located at 425 Lafeyette Street, NYC 10003).
Tickets are $15 (includes show and post-show discussions).
Buy tickets at The Public Theater Box Office,
online at www.publictheater.org or call 212.967.7555


 * more info about the study taking place at the January 15 event:
The study is being conducted by Dr. Peter Fraenkel and has been approved by the City College NY Institutional Review Board and abides by standard guidelines of confidentiality. Participation involves completing brief questionnaires before and after the performance that ask about experiences with and attitudes about mental health and illness, and taking part in a facilitated 30 minute post performance discussion with other audience members. You do not have to participate in the study or discussion in order to see the performance. However, you must see the performance to participate in the study. Please join us at 6pm SHARP in the Shiva (Public Theater) to be a part of this important research.

For inquiries about the study or the production please call (718) 384-2482.

All events co-sponsored by 1+1+1=ONE, Divine Dime Entertainment, Ltd. Special funding provided by Animating Democracy‘s Impact Initiative in association with Americans For The Arts and the Kellogg Foundation. The Hip Hop Mental Health Project is an initiative of 1+1+1=ONE. 1+1 is a Brooklyn based 501(c)3 organization that utilizes the methodology of Arts Based Civic Transformation to empower individuals, communities and societies in affecting positive social change.

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