Four Walls Theater Will Stream RIGHTS OF PASSAGE by Michelle Tyrene Johnson

"Rights of Passage", a new drama by Michelle Tyrene Johnson will livestream on Friday, July 10th at 8pm EST/ 7pm CST/ 5pm PT and will be available for a limited time through July 24th. This production will be directed by Sibyl Rolle. Sound design and composition will be provided by M. Florian Staab. Part of the proceeds will go to benefit Black Lives Matter (www.blacklivesmatter.com). With this production, Four Walls Theater is honoring 2020 graduates from college and MFA programs.

Michelle Tyrene Johnson's timely play, "Rights of Passage", asks the question what happens when a white police officer comes to a law office to seek legal help after killing an unarmed black youth? Controversy and media attention hasn't yet happened, but for the police officer, explaining what happened is more complicated than he bargained for.

Michelle Tyrene Johnson is a public radio journalist, author and speaker from the Kansas City, Missouri area who now lives in Louisville, Kentucky. As an award-winning playwright, Johnson's plays have been staged nationally. Recently, her play "Only One Day A Year" was chosen for the Kennedy Center's 2020 New Vision/New Voices Festival and recently received an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Sibyl Rolle is a singer, teacher, director and writer who uses music, creativity and innovation as a conduit for cultural exchange through the personal narrative. Sibyl has spent the past twelve years living and teaching abroad in East Africa and the Middle East. Her teaching and directing centers around empowering young people to speak their truth through storytelling.

"Rights of Passage" features actors from around the nation: Coda Boyce (MI), Henry Gardner (NJ), Mark Mazzarella (MN), Neil Redfield (NY/TX), and Ava Saunders (IL). The assistant stage manager is Kate Hohn (GA). All are 2020 graduates.

The spotlight charity for this production is Black Lives Matter whose mission is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes. By combating and countering acts of violence, creating space for Black imagination and innovation, and centering Black joy, we are winning immediate improvements in our lives.

Four Walls Theater is a grass roots socially responsible theater that produces new plays through online readings and performances, working with diverse artists from around the country. Four Walls Theater honors people of all backgrounds and works to create a safe and supportive community for our artists and audiences.

"Rights of Passage" will livestream on Friday, July 10th at 8pm EST/ 7pmCST/ 5pm PT. Donations can be made at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/110986644040. All donors who purchase tickets prior to the start of the show will be invited to the exclusive post-show talkback on Zoom.