UNIVERSES goes back to BAR — and gets ready for their big debut!
Steven Sapp, Mildred Ruiz-Sapp, Rafael Ramos, and Jacob G. Padrón at the Meet the Creators event at BAR.
We know you’re on the edge of your seat awaiting the opening of Live From the Edge – do you have your tickets yet? Steven Sapp and Mildred Ruiz-Sapp — the creative forces behind UNIVERSES and Long Wharf Theatre’s Mellon Foundation playwrights-in-residence — were in town, and Long Wharf Theatre hosted a Meet the Creators event at BAR New Haven in anticipation of the upcoming show.
Long Wharf Theatre Members were happy to welcome Steven and Mildred — and they got an impromptu taste of the show! (If you are not already a member, we invite you to join us!) UNIVERSES enraptured the crowd with singing and spoken word, while the audience joined in with clapping and stomps to the beat. It was a feel-good moment for all and a flashback to UNIVERSES’ first performance in New Haven — almost 22 years ago! — in the same back room at BAR hosted by Rafael Ramos of Bregamos Community Theater.
The night included BAR’s famous pizza, opportunities to socialize with the creators and other guests, and a featured conversation between Artistic Director, Jacob G. Padrón, and Steven and Mildred. It felt wonderful to be in person and in community with artists and theatre lovers again.
Steven Sapp and Mildred Ruiz-Sapp are the founders of UNIVERSES and the creators of Live From the Edge. Grown out of the spoken word poetry scene of the Bronx in the 90s, UNIVERSES is a theatre and performance collective of national and international renown, comprised of artists of color with the mission of re-defining and re-imagining theatre. Steven Sapp and Mildred Ruiz-Sapp have been Long Wharf Theatre’s Mellon Foundation playwrights-in-residence since 2020, and we’re excited to bring some of their “best-of” work to our audiences at Hamden’s Space Ballroom.
Live From the Edge blends and bends genres and performance styles into an emergent show of song, poetry, rhythm, and movement. Interacting with its audience, UNIVERSES creates a fresh experience every show, tailoring their performance to the mood and energy of the crowd and pulling inspiration from headline news. Learn more.
