Act Collective performs at DC JwJ Awards Ceremony

Thanks to all who came out yesterday to the DC Jobs with Justice awards ceremony.

The theater group that we're in, the ACT collective, was invited to perform. We did a version of "The Pit" which is based on Nishant Natya Manch's adaptaion of one of Hindi writer Kishanchandar's short stories. That short story itself is based on the biblical story of the good samaritan.

In our version, we tell the story of an immigrant woman who falls into a pit while trying to escape from ICE. She appeals to every passersby to help her out but no one does. The common folk are very busy with their lives and have no time to help others. The cop views her as a terrorist on account of her skin color and threatens arrest. The profit-mongering Sprawlmart representative offers to pull the woman out if she agrees to work for him at 4 dollars an hour. The minuteman wants her deported at once as he holds people like her responsible for unemployment and poverty. There's also an economist who tries to explain that the world is just fine the way it is and she should stop whining, and a politician who ignores her completely. In the end, the audience is asked whether they can help

Here's a slideshow of some of the highlights...