revolutionizing the future of american theatre
Anti-Racist, Anti-Oppressive, Radically Equitable
About Us
OUR MISSION
The Fled is an artist Collective providing a radically equitable, anti-racist, anti-oppressive platform for theater artists — to build community, expand their artistry, and make theatre that is actively engaged in our collective liberation and the dismantling of colonialist practices and white ideals. With artists at the helm, particularly our global-majority and historically marginalized artists, we lead our community with curiosity, empathy, and celebration.
By prioritizing accessibility and the decolonization of art, we aim to create space for new audiences and innovate the way we organize and make theatre. Our marginalized and underrepresented artists must steer the ship – beginning with our Black artists, as well as our Indigenous, AAPI, Latinx, MENA, Queer, Trans, Gender-nonconforming, Intersex, Disabled, and the multitude of intersecting experiences and aesthetics therein. A space is only safe for all when it is safe for its most vulnerable members. We choose to share power and resources equitably and abundantly, and in doing so actively practice the values we espouse.
When we celebrate, serve, and lead our community with joy, we are Revolutionary.
OUR HISTORY
The artists of The Fled were exiled from our former artistic home in the wake of calls for institutional decolonization of the American Theatre.
During the summer and fall of 2020, we, the Resident artists of a historically exploitative institution, stood together as a collective, led by our Black artists in a non-hierarchical structure. We asked for real, radical change that could serve as a blueprint for a new American theatre. After six months of negotiations, on December 4, 2020, over 100 Actors, Writers and Directors, received a message terminating all of our contracts. Though we were praised in the light, we received consistent pushback from leadership in the shadows. At the time, these incidents made us feel isolated and alone, but now we have come together as a collective and we are able to witness the full scope of these abuses. Our former home was but a symptom of the American theatre, which was sick long before COVID.
A theatre should bring strength and power to the community of artists within it. Yet we’ve found ourselves unified and strong in spite of – not because of – the institutional theatre. The American theatre failed us, refused us seats at their table, so we are building a new one and you are welcome to have a seat.
GUIDEPOSTS FOR OUR WORK
- Equity. We value people over profits.
- Non-hierarchy. Institutions are strongest when the power is in the hands of the many.
- Liberation. We center BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ artists and stories.
- Representation in Leadership. Artists should be represented at all levels of leadership.
- Compensation. Art is labor. Artists and those who make their work possible must be paid a living wage.
- Radical Transparency. Our creative, administrative, and financial practices and values will be open, transparent, and routinely reevaluated.
- Accessibility. Our art should be accessible to anyone who wants to engage with it.
- Healing and Growth. Mistakes are inevitable. We will greet them with empathy and move toward repair. Conflict and discomfort can be fuel for growth and change. Both are necessary.
The Fled
JOSHUA YOUNG
KIAN JOHNSON
XIOMARA GONZALES
2022 Season
RADIO FLED
Live radio show, hosted on Twitter Spaces, every other Monday at 7pm EST
On RADIO FLED, creator Dolores “D-Lo” Avery Pereira (she/her) and co-producer Bri Pollock (they/them) host live community conversations with theater professionals and listeners who “call in,” discussing various topics around building an equitable theater industry. Join on the Twitter app and be a part of the broadcast.
Upcoming Episodes:
March 7 — Special guests Eric Lockley & Ryan Dobrin (The Movement Theatre Co.), and Gineiris Garcia & Maribel Martinez (Dominican Artists Collective), join D-Lo and Bri to discuss “fighting the good fight” — transforming the theater industry through integrating values into institutional practices.
March 21 — Special guest Chris Myers (Obie winner for Branden Jacobs Jenkins’ “An Octoroon”) comes on the show to discuss his organization Anticapitalism for Artists, and the unique challenges of raising money for anticapitalist arts organizations and mobilizing for structural change.
Deliver: Letters to the Motherland from a Foreign Body, by Liz Morgan
Developmental workshop, with a public reading Saturday May 7, 2022
This poetic homage to immigrants focuses on three characters who all find themselves feeling unsafe in the place they call home: A young black doctor practicing medicine in rural America; her patient, a pregnant woman with a dark past; and a mysterious foreign body who must journey to a new world.
Liz Morgan (she/her) is a writer and performer best known for her work “Why I was Late Today…” (Huffington Post). Her full length play, Deliver: Letters to the Motherland from a Foreign Body (2019 Kilroys List Honorable Mention) received previous development with Amios and Fresh Ground Pepper. Her other plays include her solo show, Deep $h*t, as well as Breaking & Entering , Our Father, A Matter of Taste and The Clark Doll which was featured at the 2019 Deep Water Literary Festival and nominated for a 2018 Drammy Award in the category of Best Original Script after its west coast premiere. Other theatre honors include TCG’s Rising Leaders of Color, The Torchbearer for Black Theatre Award, NBT’s I AM SOUL Playwrights’ Residency (Finalist), Playwrights Realm Writing Fellowship (Semi-Finalist) and the New Works Lab at Stratford (Semi-Finalist). MFA: Brown www.LizMorganOnline.com
SERIALS
Late-night episodic play competition, premiering June 9-11, 2022 and recurring bi-monthly.
The beloved late-night play competition is BACK—reclaimed and newly imagined to prioritize BIPOC and Queer voices. SERIALS is a raucous night of serialized plays featuring The Fled’s resident actors and some of NYC’s hottest rising playwrights and directors. Teams perform original short episodic plays, while the audience votes for its favorites to return with a new installment. SERIALS was originally created by Dominic Spillane and Stephen Stout and further developed by members of The Flea Theater’s former resident artist companies.
The Fled will be celebrating the return of SERIALS with a big blowout concert on Saturday, June 11th to welcome back our loyal fans and reveal new perks for supporters. Come enjoy live music, a show, and a FREE drink with your ticket!
The Tragical Historie of Maximilien Robespierre, by Jacob Marx Rice
Developmental workshop, with public performances June 9-11, 2022
A befuddled government collapsing under the weight of corruption? Enraged protestors flooding the streets? Cutting-edge technology blasting new and dangerous ideas? Welcome to the 1790s! This play follows the incredible life of Maximilien Robespierre, from radical revolutionary to national hero to mass murderer. Performed by a genderqueered and diverse ensemble in a wild array of theatrical styles, it captures the wild spirit of the French revolution, when anything was possible.
Jacob Marx Rice (he/him) is a playwright/screenwriter based in Queens. His plays have been produced and developed at the O’Neill, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Flea Theater, The New Ohio, Atlantic Theatre Stage 2, and others. His play Chemistry has premiered in seven cities across three continents, and Jacob’s screenplay adaptation is currently in development with Anonymous Content. Recent prizes include the Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award from the JFK Center for the Performing Arts, an Ensemble Studio Theater Sloan Commission, the Faculty Award from the NYU/Tisch Department of Dramatic Writing and the Excellence in Playwriting Award at the NY International Fringe Festival. He also wrote the screenplay for See Through, a short film featuring Tony-nominated actor Lauren Ridloff. MFA: NYU. www.JacobMarxRice.com
TBA Workshop Production of a New Play, by an exciting emerging Latinx Playwright
Opening October, 2022
Pay-What-You-Can Workshops & Masterclasses for Fled Collective Members
As part of a commitment to the equitable and accessible artistic development of its members, The Fled will offer ongoing pay-what-you-can artistic training and learning opportunities, led by experts from within and outside the collective.
