Meet your fellow artists at The Z for a night of networking, giveaways, and great food from Nando's! Learn about ways to audition at local theaters, tools to share your arts news with the community, and win prizes and free tickets from arts groups across the 757. FREE and open to all performers, creators, artists, and arts leaders! Artist Member Events: The Z Artists and local art-lovers are invited to this series of interactive workshops, Master Classes, and social hours aimed at cultivating creativity and community! Your creative spark starts here! BECOME A Z ARTIST HERE

Fund your arts career throught grants! Learn the ins and outs of the application process from those well-versed in the process: Hillary Plate & Rita Cohen.

Time to care for yourself! As artists we are especially vulnerable and need to carve out time for our emotional and mental well being. Join us as Lynn Gilbert, creator of Sounds of Evensong, an immersive sound and vibration healing practice, leads a healing vibration session for us to experience together. Then learn about the programs and resources supporting mental health available through NAMI Coastal Virginia (National Alliance on Mental Illness).

Join accomplished actress, published playwright and ODU Assistant Theater Professor, Brittney Harris, as she shares her insights and expertise about Devised Theater and all the ways it can help us talk about the important issues of our time. Devised Theater: A method of theater-making in which the script originates from collaborative, often improvisatory work by a performing ensemble.

ABOUT THE MASTERCLASS LEADER:

Brittney S. Harris is an Assistant Professor of Theatre in the Department of Communication and Theatre Arts at Old Dominion University. Her areas of expertise are in Race and Performance, Performance as Activism, and Community-Engaged Devised Theatre. She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Acting with an emphasis in Cultural Enrichment from the University of Georgia. As an artist and educator, her approach to creativity centers on providing a sacred space for discovery, exploration, and individuality.

Brittney’s works survey the adverse effects of vicarious trauma from social media on the personal psyche and how narrative-based storytelling is used as a vessel for social resilience and redemption. Specific topics explored, but not limited to, are Racial Injustice, Mental Health Awareness, Gender Equality, and Domestic Violence Awareness. Her works have been featured at several national interdisciplinary conferences and fringe festivals, including the Association for Theatre in Higher Education Conference (ATHE), National Women’s Theatre Festival, and Black Theatre Network.

Most recent featured directed performances/programming include Silhouettes: Cut to Black, The Kara Walker Project (ROUGE Productions and VA MOCA); Exodus: Homecoming VA (The InHEIRitance Project); The Hidden History of the Banjo (Zeiders American Dream Theater); Intimate Apparel (ODURep Theatre) and created/devised TAG! You’re It!, Symptomatic: IRL and Echoes: Transcending Through Story for the ODURep Theatre Mainstage season. Currently, she is workshopping and touring her three solo performance projects, Pedigree, The Intersection: The Sandra Bland Project and Being B.A.D.; each project assessing how narratives of resilience are archived, shared, remembered, and incite a dialogue in promoting social reform and change.

Free with Z artist membership; $10 suggested donation for non-members

JOIN THE Z ARTIST MEMBERSHIP

Join us for the official kickoff of The Z Artist Membership! Get a preview of the year’s events, and learn more about the exclusive benefits of becoming an Artist Member. Then, register and get your membership card. Orientation will be followed by an open Q&A and networking time.

Be a part of the process of new play development! Hear excerpts from 3 new plays read aloud and offer constructive feedback through a guided masterclass led by our mentor artist.