https://www.thereisafield.info/events daily 0.75 2022-03-31 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/indiana-center-for-middle-east-peace monthly 0.5 2021-08-26 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/ujwfe1uxsqz539y2r1x6dut9z80u2m monthly 0.5 2021-08-27 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/screening-discussion-hosted-by-the-first-united-methodist-church-boulder monthly 0.5 2021-08-26 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/yale-council-on-middle-east-studies-summer-institute-for-teachers monthly 0.5 2021-08-26 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/mideast-focus-film-series monthly 0.5 2021-03-09 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/there-is-a-field-screening-discussion-hosted-by-jvp-westchester monthly 0.5 2021-02-18 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/z78ayiqyx8bf8vevp7w1tg7mcbvuxi monthly 0.5 2021-02-18 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/arab-america-nationa-museum monthly 0.5 2021-02-18 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/a-screening-of-there-is-a-field-hosted-by-the-palestinian-american-community-center monthly 0.5 2020-12-10 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/screening-of-there-is-a-field-at-the-palestinian-museum monthly 0.5 2020-11-08 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/there-is-a-field-screening monthly 0.5 2020-10-20 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/event-two-grb4d monthly 0.5 2020-10-12 https://www.thereisafield.info/events/palestine-premiere monthly 0.5 2020-10-20 https://www.thereisafield.info/journey daily 0.75 2020-10-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601305172656-IBAZ961IZ8KA7A4ARU7S/Oct2000-all-martyrs.jpg The Journey - The Journey In early October 2000, Palestinians throughout the West Bank, Gaza and inside Israel staged mass demonstrations to protest Israel’s occupation and repressive violence, marking the beginning of the Second Intifada. During these demonstrations, Israeli forces killed 13 Palestinians inside Israel and 49 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. Hundreds more were injured. One of those murdered was a seventeen-year peace activist, Asel Asleh. Playwright Jen Marlowe (who was a friend of Asel’s) reached out to Asel’s sister, Nardin, to ask if she would be interested in collaborating together on a play in order to amplify Asel’s story and the injustices he and his family faced. Jen began interviewing Nardin, a process which continued for nearly 15 years and became the heart of There Is A Field, woven between interviews with Asel’s other family members, email exchanges that Asel left behind, and transcripts from the Israeli government’s commission of inquiry investigating the October 2000 killings. There Is A Field, has seen multiple iterations over the years: https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601224536418-16U69FIQSKXSA64GSNIF/Oct+2010+Global+Theatrical+Action+Glasgow2.jpg The Journey - 2010 Global Theatrical Action Donkeysaddle Projects (DSP--the organization Jen Marlowe founded) called on theatre companies, artists, and activists worldwide to remember the ten-year anniversary of the October 2000 events with global performances, staged readings and "living room readings" of an early version of the play. This “Global Theatrical Action” occurred in October 2010 across 40 cities in 18 countries, on six continents. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601224944230-LXE8CUPW1CCPJ59WAQBX/2016+Nardeen+trying+to+get+to+the+funeral.jpg The Journey - 2016 University Tour to commemorate the 40-year anniversary of Land Day In preparation for a university tour of the play, Marlowe dove back into script development during the summer of 2014. As she re-immersed herself in the details of her young friend’s murder, 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot and killed in Ferguson, MO. As the Ferguson uprising erupted in response, Jen could not help but notice the parallels to Asel’s story. Plans developed for a 20-university tour across ten states -- four of which were Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The final performance took place in St. Louis, a special event for those who had been part of the Ferguson uprising. Themes of state violence and structural inequality resonated so strongly with the HBCU and Ferguson audiences, and it felt clear to Jen and the DSP team that the next iteration of There Is A Field needed to examine these connections more deeply--spurring the development of the There Is A Field Residency Program. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601225337734-99M7XJX2BUA8D9XNE5PX/Miami+res+music+box2.JPG The Journey - 2017/2018 Residency Program Partnering with activists and organizations in the Movement for Black Lives, DSP facilitated a series of intensive theatre-based community residencies, using There Is A Field as a framework for political education, Black-Palestinian solidarity, and movement building. Participants rehearsed a Performance-Reading of There Is A Field, alongside engaging in workshops to learn about Palestine/Israel, explore how injustices there are connected to injustices experienced in the US, and nurture joint visions of liberation. The process culminated with activists performing There Is A Field for their broader community. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601225579377-6HX4GLAJXVYQK1FUD6OJ/Black+Mama+Bail+Out+fundraiser+rehearsal.jpg The Journey - 2018 partnership with GildaPapoose Collective & Black Mama Bail-Out Fund DSP was honored to partner with the GildaPapoose Collective on a year-long community effort to fundraise for the Black Mama Bail Out Fund with staged readings of “There Is A Field” across D.C. Following the bail out of six local mothers from funds raised by these readings, several of the women joined the GildaPapoose Collective’s theater fellowship, engaging in performance-based education to highlight the impacts of racism, state violence, and mass incarceration on Palestinian and Black communities. The project culminated with The Kennedy Center’s 17th Annual Page-to-Stage festival in September 2018 with a staged reading of There Is A Field, led by three formerly incarcerated women. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601226631399-7QY4ND56XDSIG6JEH5LT/2019+Zimbabwe+Bulawayo4.jpeg The Journey - 2019 Zimbabwe production In 2019, Zimbabwean director Tafadzwa Bob Mutumbi mounted There Is A Field in Harare. The production fused traditional Zimbabwean music and dance, and was intended to reflect on Zimbabwe security forces’ brutality and the national healing discourse. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600660734031-8VU77WWCI0JUR7XZ35MU/screen+shot+Or+Commission.jpg The Journey - 2020 Documentary Film In the summer of 2018, DSP invited a select number of prior residency participants to travel to Peñasco, NM to film a Performance-Reading of There Is A Field, as well as engage in deeper discussions about the connections between different experiences of oppression, resistance, and the movements towards liberation. This experience became the basis for the current documentary film. https://www.thereisafield.info/home daily 1.0 2024-03-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1602487313124-4VOSYQTJOQQF44HRZU8G/Nerlande%2C+Darius+and+Lara4.jpg Home https://www.thereisafield.info/directors-statement daily 0.75 2020-09-28 https://www.thereisafield.info/team daily 0.75 2020-09-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600700635781-P5JZGK1BOLBX9N6C4ICK/Lara+Alqasem+0N7A1978.JPG The Team Lara Alqasem (Nardin 1) is a Palestinian-American who grew up in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She was first introduced to the power of storytelling for the purpose of preserving and sharing history at the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program in Gainesville, Florida. Since then, she has worked in different capacities to help build advocacy initiatives that respond directly to people's daily experiences and needs. She is currently a Masters student in Jerusalem and lives with her four beloved cats. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600709521277-TG3N2ECJIY4C04HJQ51S/Selena+Goods.jpg The Team Selena Goods (Siwar & Ensemble) is a recent graduate of New College of Florida where she served as Student Government Co-President. She was the Outreach Coordinator for Million Hoodies West Florida chapter, a racial justice grassroots organization that focused on ending racism, mass criminalization, and gun violence. She currently resides in Florida where she is figuring out how to transition her activism beyond college spaces. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600700685328-REZ8D95GJM44HJLLMQFB/Darius+Khalil+Gordon+0436fe36-5f53-44fb-8cc6-d72cd9dc71e3.JPG The Team Darius Khalil Gordon (Asel) is the former National Field Organizer for the Center for Popular Democracy, lead organizer for Citizen Action of New York, and National Organizer for the Gathering for Justice. Darius first came to New York to serve as African American and Youth director for a State Assembly campaign. He next worked with the Working Families Canvassing and Fundraising team. Through those years of organizing, Darius worked on and won campaigns such as Fight for $15, paid sick and family leave and helped get Raise the Age legislation passed in New York state. He’s a Washington D.C native. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600701186604-ZH8M6KQM749T60D7NYQD/Nyeemah+Holman+IMG_5703.jpg The Team Nyeemah Holman (Narrator) is a poet and a student activist from Poughkeepsie, New York. She is attending FIT to major in black studies and fashion design hoping to make an impact in the world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600793369985-ZYQ4MSAZ6U4ASOMBT41N/Dontay+Jackson.png The Team Dontay Jackson (Ensemble) was born and raised in Poughkeepsie NY. He is an education organizer, but uses his platform for any unheard voice. Dontay is currently preparing to further his studies in trade school. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600701398081-GOM99APW6DN5WKEPYDYT/Marquis+Jenkins.jpg The Team Marquis Jenkins (Baraa & Ensemble) is WE ACT’s Director of Organizing, leading a team responsible for organizing and membership. He previously worked as the senior community organizer at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, supporting communities of color organizing around criminal justice. Prior, he was an organizer with Good Old Lower East Side, Inc, focused on organizing public housing residents. Marquis began organizing at the age of 17, when he ran for resident association president of his public housing development. Marquis attended Touro College, majoring in Education and Psychology. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601216800691-TLEE4KG08UK86MP524KH/Nerlande+headshot.jpeg The Team Nerlande Joseph (Nardin 2) is a first generation Haitian-American and is born and raised in Miami, Florida. She currently is an attorney, but her passions are really what keep her busy. She is a community organizer, poet, photographer, and birth doula. Her goal is to help others realize that they themselves can shift change and can create their vision. History is filled with courageous individuals who dared to use their voices and tools to make a difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600701504882-I3AYQJSBKRAL4B5SYOP6/James+Klynn.jpg The Team James Klynn (Ensemble) is an artist, writer, producer, and educator born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. Now living in south Florida, he uses his love of poetry, MCing & stage presence, and weaves performances deep in storytelling and varied musical expressions. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600701711095-4HCAG8T8D2J0LYTIUOGV/Margaret+Kwateng+MK+HS+%281%29.jpg The Team Margaret Kwateng (Jamelih) is an organizer and storyteller originally from Brooklyn. Her political foundation developed during her years in the Hudson Valley, where she organized around the fight for affordable gas and electricity, equitably funded schools, and police and prison guard accountability. She is currently the National Green New Deal Organizer with Grassroots Global Justice, building toward a regenerative feminist economy. She is the happy steward to many house plants. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600701786432-L7C4KXXYDXQDNZJTGLUF/Amber+Murchison+pick.jpg The Team Amber Murchison (Ensemble) is located in New York’s Hudson Valley. After many years working with youth in the foster care system she is beginning to explore activism again in new ways. She enjoys making music, good company and exploring ways to to create a just and equitable future. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600701860166-QJE8NLQETSQEA1LP5KCR/Stan+Richardson+118156196_639479420024984_7692678363614608630_n.jpg The Team E. Stanley Richardson (Hassan) is an American poet, actor, playwright, social/political commentator and lecturer. He is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Alachua County, Florida (2020 - 2022 and author of the award-winning book of poetry "Hip Hop Is Dead - Long Live Hip Hop: The Birth, Death And Resurrection Of Hip Hop Activism" 2017). His poetry has appeared in various literary publications in the United States and abroad. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600701962863-1U7DX76WCZEMBFDTVJQ0/St+James+Valsin.jpeg The Team St James Valsin (Mustafa & Ensemble) is an artist and community advocate. Born to Haitian immigrant parents and raised in Miami, Florida, James has worked with organizations like Green Peace, Dream Defenders, and Black Lives Matter to bring about a more just society. Today James teaches guitar and poetry in public schools throughout Miami-Dade. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600706879043-DYF6ZJ516AQEWWJFOQBP/Nada%2BElia%2B49761549_10156325902119833_8609970275133423616_n.jpg The Team Nada Elia (Facilitator) is a Palestinian born in Baghdad and raised in Beirut, where she worked as a journalist covering the (un)civil war. Now Seattle-based, her activism focuses on resisting institutionalized systems of oppression (racism, sexism, criminal injustice). Elia teaches Arab American Studies at Western Washington University, and is a regular contributor to Mondoweiss and Middle East Eye. She co-edited INCITE! Women and Trans People of Color’s Law Enforcement Violence Toolkit for Activists, as well as Critical Ethnic Studies: A Reader, and is working on a manuscript about the politics of solidarity. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600718070835-LK1W3R8TV5O2WXOVJVG8/Heather%2BHolmes.jpg The Team Heather Holmes (Performance director) From TX. Performer, writer, and teaching artist. Domestic and international art and theater projects. Filmmaker and theater-maker, avid storyteller. Spelman College, University of Houston, The New School for Drama, EmergeNYC. Lead facilitator for Donkeysaddle Projects. Former roller skater recently returned to the craft. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601216672611-IA52KRYW7BQBG6POCHHI/BTrenHeadshot.JPG The Team Brittany King (Associate Producer) is a Project Director for Donkeysaddle Projects. She is from Fort Lauderdale, FL and is a member of Dream Defenders. Brittany started her organizing after the police killings of Eric Garner and Mike Brown. Brittany is committed to work that builds power within communities of color, helping folks rediscover their cultural and political importance in today’s society. She wishes to provide her community members with a different way to interact with each other, their world, and their narratives, through cultivating music, art, storytelling, theatre and video. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600706459063-OTOXVNOTJIKWQ1IF8UXU/Jen+Great+Escalante.png The Team Jen Marlowe (Playwright, film director) is an author/filmmaker/playwright and human rights activist. Her most recent book is I Am Troy Davis written with innocent death row prisoner Troy Davis and his sister. Her previous books include The Hour of Sunlight: One Palestinian’s Journey from Prisoner to Peacemaker, and Darfur Diaries: Stories of Survival. Her films include Remembering the Gaza War, Witness Bahrain, One Family in Gaza, Rebuilding Hope: Sudan’s Lost Boys Return Home and Darfur Diaries: Message from Home. www.donkeysaddle.org. https://www.thereisafield.info/aslehs-family daily 0.75 2020-09-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601194340659-81UFZUUHTK7SFT5HONBT/Frame.png The Family https://www.thereisafield.info/contact daily 0.75 2020-10-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1602067847771-8I9H3IIS9HBNA176B6UJ/aseel.png Contact https://www.thereisafield.info/press daily 0.75 2020-12-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601193083279-6NGQMR1MNDC1AI45I6WU/screenshot+emails2.jpg Press Coverage - Jen Marlowe’s new film aims to connect movements and struggles Mondoweiss | By Michael Arria, Oct 26, 2000 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1606983915793-Q5TIHVRY4RPHNSL7HV58/asleh+2007+poster+afp.jpg Press Coverage - How the killing of a Palestinian youth became a play read by African Americans Middle East Eye | By Nada Elia, Nov 12, 2000 https://www.thereisafield.info/testimonials daily 0.75 2020-12-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1606994121186-YN6CP77EGW891OM5CQGW/Add+a+subheading.png Praise https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1606994710404-ZSXQ0NEZBBYWX9HY1WD8/Add+a+subheading+%281%29.png Praise https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1609272137648-3QD1MRM2E7LXGH2KEM4T/DEARMHAMPTON.PNG Praise https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1609272132533-K93KGI1XSE5SOCSHQDOV/Kia-Corthron.png Praise https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1606995608040-L7L041GBMH4V2FR3FIOZ/Add+a+subheading+%283%29.png Praise https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1609270695621-FAEIVVQZZM7G9A49HD31/JENAETAYLOR.png Praise https://www.thereisafield.info/synopsis daily 0.75 2020-12-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1600653362692-APH3YDWHGFI86Y2ZFXJD/Asel+Slider+t.jpg Synopsis Asel Asleh https://www.thereisafield.info/organize-a-screening daily 0.75 2025-03-04 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1609706962890-NUOCO6XJTTYQB896LUUA/EDITION.png Organize a Screening Panel discussion after the US Premiere of There Is A Field" https://www.thereisafield.info/purchase daily 0.75 2023-08-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/6cad065d-b99d-4ef4-b337-930479addd08/Film+Still+4.jpg Purchase - Purchase a copy of There is a Field for educational use. There Is A Field is now available for educational purchase. We believe classroom use of There Is A Field can play an important role in catalyzing meaningful conversations with students around state violence, decolonization, and movements for liberation in the United States, Palestine, and across the world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f613631db40c63a881c9f2d/1601225579377-6HX4GLAJXVYQK1FUD6OJ/Black+Mama+Bail+Out+fundraiser+rehearsal.jpg Purchase - Whether you are a professor in a department of Middle East Studies, Black Studies, Theatre, Peace & Conflict, or Human Rights, you and your students are sure to find There Is A Field timely and relevant. The film team would love to engage with your students directly, with a workshop or post-screening discussion. And, a film discussion guide can be downloaded here. The price of an institutional purchase is sliding scale. These fees enable DSP to continue our work, but we never want these fees to be a barrier. To get started, please fill out the Purchase Request Form below. A member of our team will get back to you to begin working out the details.