Poor People is an adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky novel Poor Folk, written for the stage by Lavinia Roberts and directed by Irene Kapustina. This full-length is part of the New York City International Fringe Festival 2015. Irene and Lavinia will discuss the work, read excerpts from the play, answer a Q&A, and do Theatre of the Oppressed activities around the social justice themes of the novel, to explore contemporary issues, such as workers rights and poverty.

Check out our website: https://poorpeopletheplay.wordpress.com/

Support us: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/88025615/poor-people-at-fringenyc-2015

Bluestockings Bookstore and Activist Center
172 Allen Street, New York, NY 10002
http://bluestockings.com/

Irene Kapustina is a New York City based stage director and has directed at The Drama League, The Barrow Group, The Players Theatre, TADA!, Theater for the New City, Dixon Place, Manhattan Rep, and other venues; site specific work includes Tallulah Lounge and the Museum of Sex in New York. Irene’s primary focus is on developing and directing new plays and staging classical works. Irene Kapustina has facilitated with Wingspan Arts, ENACT (drama therapy), Zhuk Art Initiative, and Hunter College (foreign language through drama). She has a MA in Applied Theatre from the City University of New York, School of Professional Studies.
www.IreneKapustina.com

Lavinia Roberts is a visual artist and playwright based in Brooklyn. She is published with Indie Theatre Now, Pioneer Drama, Heuer Publishing, Meriwether Publishing, Brooklyn Publishers, One Act Play Depot, and others. Her work has been produced in London, Bath, Buffalo, Seattle, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and other cities. Her full length play, Counting Skunks, won the 2011 Mario Fratti-Fred Newman Political Playwriting Award at the Castillo Theatre in New York City. She was a member of the 2012 Women’s Work Lab at the New Perspective Theatre. Her work has been featured in New York City, at Here Arts Center, Galapagos, Metropolitan Playhouse, The Brick, The Bushwick Starr, The Tank, Dixon Place, Theatre for the New City, the Secret Theatre, in the Midtown International Theatre Festival, the Thespis Fringe Festival, and others. She is literary manager for The New Alchemists, a social justice oriented performance collective. She has a MA in Theatre Education for Colleges and Communities from New York University. She has facilitated in schools, arts centers, theaters, libraries, and while on artist residencies in both Thailand and the Philippines.