In our modern, busy world, few people choose to spend their precious time interacting with and enjoying theatre. Local outreach program, On Stage, is looking to change this. The founder of On Stage, Lucas Erickson, comes from a strong theatre background.
In an interview I held with Erickson, he recalled the various jobs he had in the scene leading up to the beginning of On Stage, from lighting design to working with the education department of the Guthrie theater to promote Shakespeare to the younger generation. Erickson eventually independently took on the role of educator when he founded On Stage—what he calls a touring educational group.
Now, he travels alongside other educators with On Stage to schools and communities across the state to hold discussions centered around upcoming productions in the Twin Cities. Their efforts create open dialogue while simultaneously supporting local theatre companies. So far, On Stage reports they have reached over 7,500 students and those in the community here in Minnesota.
On Stage has visited Century College multiple times throughout the years, and I have had the pleasure of sitting in on several of the discussions. One thing is congruent between all discussion sessions: there is always a sense of openness. Chairs are arranged in a circle whenever possible to promote conversation, and in hybrid courses where some students are over Zoom, the educators work to include those joining virtually. Collaborative conversation versus “teaching at” students is the goal here; “[we wanted to] have everyone be a teacher and really just facilitate a conversation… That’s just so much more meaningful,” said Erickson. Meaningful is certainly an appropriate word for the impact On Stage is creating.
The most recent discussion On Stage brought to Century College centered around the play Invisible Fences that will run March 6-15 at Open Eye Theatre located in downtown Minneapolis. Invisible Fences is a play both written and performed by musician Gaelynn Lea and writer Kevin Kling and accompanied by instrumentalist Jeremy Ylvisaker.
The play is described on Open Eye Theatre’s website as a “unique theatrical experience celebrating Disability Culture.” Told as a fable following the two characters, The Largroff and The Grasshopper, Invisible Fences “touches on identity, disability, and the stories we tell ourselves.” Invisible Fences promises to be a gem of a show, but it won’t be around for long, so be sure to get tickets as soon as possible. For accessibility at the show, there will be captioning and ASL interpretation, as well as narrated descriptions. Masks are mandated at all performances.
Purchase tickets here
Find more information on accessibility at Open Eye here
