Remnants

Synopsis —

Remnants is an American hip hop coming of age musical of three life-long friends who graduate from high school in the top of their class. Now celebrities, one of the boys witnesses the brutal murder of a Chinese delivery boy. Outraged, our young hero vows revenge. With original R & B songs, rapping, popping and locking, live deejay, and a full out block party, our young philosophers contemplate retaliation and reflect with a heavy dose of humor upon the challenges of adolescent boys as they strive for success in an uncertain world.

Production History —

Remnants was first commissioned by Pregones Theater, a Bronx-based ensemble, with funding from the New York State Council on the Arts. Between 2011–2014, the University of Richmond generously supported the development of this work. Remnants had its first two-day staged reading with music in May of 2011 at the University of Richmond. In March of 2012, there was the second staged reading with music and choreography from Jorge “Pop Master Fabel” Pabon and Alicia Díaz. In these two staged readings, Maja E. White was the light designer. She explored the possibilities and limitations of using eco-friendly lighting in a theater context and evaluating the benefits of going "green." In January of 2014 we had a third staged reading with a focus on the storyline, characters and music. We were also invited to do a staged reading at the Culver Center for the Arts in conjunction with the Tomas Rivera Conference at the University of California, Riverside in February of 2014. Following the performance there was a talk-back facilitated by Rickerby Hinds, creator and director of the Califest Hip-Hop Theater Festival, playwright, and Professor of Theatre, UCR.