This March, The Z presents She’s a BrickHouse - a full month of FREE performing arts offerings & panel discussions celebrating art & stories by and about women.

The Opulent 80’s features three performers exploring the materialism, nuclear threats, and angst of the 1980’s.

Liz Terrell and Chris Brydge are an auspicious combination of talent. "Liz & Brydge" are sure to captivate as Brydge lays down a foundation of swinging bass lines and passionate grooves while Liz soars over top with sensuous tones and expressive power. 

Join us for a full-day workshop with award winning playwright Jonathan Tolins. Join Sibel as she interviews Jon in our Studio Theater about his journey as a writer. He will share what it takes to navigate a life as an artist and make a sustaining career out of doing what you love.  After the interview is opened up for questions, everyone will break for lunch. Upon return, Jon will conduct a Master Class in which four excerpts from The Z’s American Dreamwrights Group will be read for Jon’s critique.

“King of the Wild Frontier” is a name befitting a Tennessee hero with a coonskin cap… but what if there are not one, not two, but three such heroes competing for the title?

The vibrant convergence of poetic expression, civic engagement, and authentic voice takes center stage at the 16th Annual Hampton Roads Youth Poetry Festival. This celebrated event series, a staple in Hampton Roads’ cultural landscape, has evolved into a dynamic platform that empowers young poets to amplify their voices, foster social change, and showcase their boundless creativity.

During this FREE season finale, Hampton Roads teens will use poetry in their own re-interpretations of local oral history through the lens of experiences with current events.

Teens With a Purpose (TWP) believes that everyone has a story to tell. We are looking for committed, opinionated teenagers with an interest in performance poetry, theatre, songwriting, debate, rap or just being heard.  Together students will read, write, critically analyze, bond and can perform on premier stages throughout our region.

The Hear This Youth Poetry Festival is more than a local event; it’s part of a national network of youth literary arts and creative youth development organizations, including Urban Word, New York; Words Beats & Life, Washington DC; DewMore, Baltimore; Southern Word, Tennessee; & Youth Speaks San Francisco with alumni including Amanda Gorman, the Poet for President Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2020. HRYP is a unique opportunity for students 13-19 years of age that puts young people at the center of their learning experiences as a way to engage them in their own education, through performance poetry.

The festival also provides young poets who are civically engaged with the opportunity to via for the prestigious Youth Poet Laureate (YPL) title. This title honors their poetic prowess + propels them to compete in the Eastern Regionals and potentially, the National YPL Competition. Youth Poet Laureate identifies youth writers + leaders who are committed to civic/community engagement, poetry & performance, leadership + education across Hampton Roads & Virginia.