EM HAUSMANN
The Very Last Dance of Homeless Joe
by Rich Courage
World Premiere — Theater for the New City
December 2022
CAST: Tim Bronkema, Samekh Resh, Valerie Johnson, Selena Donayre, Rich Courage, Robert Maffia, Louis Courage, Roger Rover, Herut Ashkenazi, Emma Littig, Elizabeth Smith
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Director: Em Hausmann
Playwright & Producer: Rich Courage
Lighting Design: John Lance Harrison
Scenic Design: Angelina Meccariello, Em Hausmann, Izy Taylor
Cover & Poster Artwork: Anna Kwan
Production Stage Manager: Izy Taylor
Light Board Operator: Geoffrey Kinsey-Christopher
Photos by Jonathan Slaff & Lawrence Applebaum
"I don't like that man. I must get to know him better.” This quote from Abraham Lincoln should be deeply considered especially now: a time of division, mistrust, and fear. Lately, the media and politicians have been obsessively focusing on the unhoused, the mentally ill, and their crimes. But who are these people that are gaining such infamy? The tragicomedy, “The Very Last Dance of Homeless Joe,” opens the door to knowing this segment of the NYC populace. Charlie, the main character states, “Those folks? They were all somebody’s baby once. They were clothed, fed, maybe even loved. Now they’re just adrift. Homeless and alone. And they’re everywhere… The disenfranchised. The outcasts. Society’s lost and forgotten children. Manhattan’s homeless people.” Playwright and actor Rich Courage was once a member of the unhoused community who had been hospitalized for mental illness. His play draws from his own personal experience and that of others he has met on the streets. He wrote his play to give them a voice, and he invited the members of the audience to laugh, cry, and feel. Over the course of the next 90 minutes, how could we not?
Joe and the others represent a population that is disliked and distrusted. From early childhood, there is an innate fear of certain people, and society has been conditioned to turn away from that which is ugly or not pleasing. "I don't like that man. I must get to know him better.” Let Lincoln’s words, along with the many brilliant, lyrical passages of Mr. Courage’s play, remind us of the importance of hearing stories, understanding others, and learning. If we allow ourselves that, we might just find that we are not so different from those whom we “other,” and that for a bit of misfortune we might find ourselves in their shoes.
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-NY Theatre Wire