El Paso’s Border Theatre returns to the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre to debut an improvisational piece called Dare (me) to be … Stuspid!
The performance is at 2:30 pm Sunday, February 11 (Super Bowl Sunday) in the Philanthropy Theatre on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre complex. General admission tickets are $15 at the Plaza Theatre Box Office, and $15 plus service charges at Ticketmaster.
Dare (me) to be … Stuspid! kicks off two hours before the Super Bowl, and will end before the first whistle.
It is an improvisational piece that tackles issues such as self-esteem and peer and social media pressures. Its ground game is built around three one-act plays connected by a 16-year-old trying to tell her life story as she imagines it playing out, only to be challenged by her past.
The production is quarterbacked by Border Theatre founder Austin Savage. The director worked with children and teens in Border Theatre’s acting labs to create the play. It relies in part on audience participation.
“It is part play, part improv, part party, and wholly audience interactive,” Savage said, adding, “We guarantee to get you out in plenty of time for any big sporting events that may be occurring on the day.”
In its eighth season, the Jewel Box Series was created in partnership with El Paso Live in 2014 to host local performing artists and groups in that jewel box of a venue, the Philanthropy Theatre in the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre. Border Theatre has presented original works in the series several times.
Here are the remaining shows in the 2023-2024 season:
• Al’s Club, Teatro Neplanta (2:30 pm Sunday, March 10, 2024) — El Paso’s newest theater group debuts an original work by playwright Matt Bianchi that takes place in a bar and deals with ego, faith, addiction, drunk driving, and life’s universal questions.
• The Scarecrow, KESSTO Kreatures (2:30 pm Sunday, April 14, 2024) — This original variation of The Wizard of Oz by puppeteer, playwright, teacher, and Jim Henson Foundation grant recipient Anthony Michael Stokes follows His Majesty the Scarecrow as he tries to save his country from a growing horde of crows.
• Arabica, Light Rain and Sisters of the Moon (2:30 pm Sunday, May 12, 2024) — Two names long associated with music (Doug Adamz and Light Rain) and belly dance (Leilania Marcus and Sisters of the Moon) transport you with a timeless romance between ethereal music and mysterious dance.
