Floorwork Arts Collective cast performing “Great Bends” (Photos courtesy of Rebecca Neckritz)
Rebecca Neckritz, the Jewish co-founder of Floorwork Arts Collective, a small theater company started in New York City, will perform in her company’s immersive dinner theater production “Great Bends” at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival.
“The audience is all in a living room together, all experiencing a dinner party,” Neckritz said. “Not only are you just sitting, watching the dinner party, but you’re also eating the same food as the actors since it’s an immersive dinner theater show.”
Neckritz was born and raised in Philadelphia attending Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel. She told Philadelphia Jewish Exponent that the play is rooted in Jewish values such as tikkun olam, taking care of the world, and l’dor v’dor, from generation to generation.
“Taking care of the Earth is the central conflict between characters,” said Neckritz. “They all have very different ideas about how to take care of the Earth and about how to move forward in the world that’s, literally and metaphorically, flooding.”
Floorwork Arts Collective cast performing “Great Bends” (Photos courtesy of Rebecca Neckritz)
Neckritz’s co-star, Mara Einson, is also Jewish and grew up in a Jewish community in Massachusetts, according to Neckritz.
“There’s also so many themes in the show that are all about the next generation, l’dor v’dor, passing down our values to our children,” added Neckritz. “It explores our relationships that we have with children and the fears and the hopes that we put on the next generation and if it’s fair to do any of that.”
The play, created by Sarah Powers who was one of the collective’s founders, is set in an American town that has been devastated by natural disasters.
According to a press release, the story follows two former environmental activists who reconnect. The character Ness visits home and reconnects with Ona, who is involved in different activist movements, at a dinner party.
“It’s this multisensory experience,” Neckritz said. “You’re in this room, you’re watching the show with your eyes, there’s sound happening all around you, and you’re also getting to taste the food from this dinner party.”
The food served during the show, according to Neckritz, is completely home cooked, provided by Floorwork Arts Collective. The menu will consist of Caprese skewers for appetizers and pasta vodka for the main meal. Neckritz said her mother is making homemade dark chocolate brownies for dessert.
Neckritz said the biggest challenge of the production has been time. Neckritz works full-time at a Jewish nonprofit that supports Jewish graduate students in North America but finds time after her workday to fit in rehearsal time with the production team.
“We have a very short rehearsal period,” Neckritz said. “I go straight from my 9-to-5 job to the rehearsal studio, and then I’m rehearsing from 6:30 to 10 every night.”
Neckritz also mentioned the challenge of putting together the production on a budget.
Floorwork Arts Collective cast
“We are self-producing, we don’t have any funders, we don’t have any donors. It’s just four artists trying to make their work happen all by themselves,” said Neckritz. “I think that’s the biggest challenge, trying to figure out how to do everything on a very bare-bones budget, [but] we were able to get free rehearsal space since we won a contest for it in New York.”
According to the press release, the play explores how one’s decisions can shape the future of the world and confront a world damaged by natural disasters. The play navigates grief, ideology, conversations about birth, loss and love, and is “a mirror for broader societal tensions.”
“Great Bends” will run from Sept. 19 to 21 at Studio 34 on Baltimore Ave. in Philadelphia as part of the Fringe Festival. Tickets and additional information about the performance can be found at PhillyFringe.org.