Video: Virtual Production REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM IS WHAT WE WANT Out Now

A collection of stories of reproductive freedom told from a wide variety of perspectives is presented in a unique virtual production of Reproductive Freedom is What We Want with Deaf Sign Language. The play is produced by Arizona Theatre Matters (ATM) in Glendale, Arizona, in partnership with Repro Freedom Arts in New York City.

Released on YouTube, the production of Reproductive Freedom Is What We Want features Deaf Sign Language performer Nehamiah Danjuma, whose expressive performance is supported by a cast of voice actors and on-screen text. The combination makes the performance uplifting and universally accessible to audiences across the country and world.

Directed by Jeanmarie Simpson, Artistic Director of Arizona Theatre Matters (ATM), and Ololade Adekanmi, the production is a collection of signature pieces from Repro Freedom Arts including poetry, testimony, first-person narrations, comedy, and more. The work brings together a wide range of deeply personal stories supporting reproductive freedom.

The stories, poignant and powerful, share people navigating some of the most critical moments of their lives, told with quiet intensity that lingers long after the performance ends. Other selections offer a lighter side that highlights the absurdity of attempted and wrongful extreme government control of bodily autonomy.

The writings from Repro Freedom Arts include works by Judith Arcana, Angela Bonavoglia, Cindy Cooper, Feminist Health Clinic, June Jordan, Flo Kennedy. Zoneziwoh Mbondgulo-Wondieh, Kathy Najimy and Mo Gaffney, Alix Olson, Michael David Quinn, Mary Ann Sorrentino, Charlotte Taft, Dr. Emilie Townes, Dr, Susan Wicklund and more.

Each piece takes an unvarnished look at the emotional and societal stakes involved in often painful decisions, inviting the audience to sit with the complexity of each story. The restrained delivery of the performers allows the depth of the material to speak for itself, creating a powerful resonance that builds quietly, moment by moment.

The voice actors are Diana Kimetto, Marcus Brown, Janet Eng, Bradford Gray, Christina Mathews, Emmy Cuthbert, Nona Isaacson, Ariana Wilber, and Mariana Brubaker, with announcer Ray Williams and a musical performance by The Hippy Nuts.

Producer and presenter Arizona Theatre Matters (ATM) tells the stories that need to be told from the communities that need to be heard. "Nothing About Us Without Us" is at the core of its work. "We bring voices to the forefront and create theatre that cuts to the heart of the issues, pushing past comfort zones to provoke real thought and dialogue. Reproductive Freedom is What We Want is part of our ongoing effort to tell the stories that shape lives and challenge perspectives," says Artistic Director Jeanmarie Simpson. ATM's production is made possible through the generous support of the Arizona Commission on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Repro Freedom Arts, which created the script, uses theatrical storytelling to support reproductive health, rights, freedom and justice. It presents performances onstage, virtually, in print and in communities, traveling to 20 states and conducting walking tours in New York City. The group is a platform of 24-year-old nonprofit Words of Choice, Inc. Founded by Cindy Cooper, the organization has won awards from the Abortion Conversations Project, NARAL Pro-Choice America (Repro Freedom for All), and the Quixote Foundation. Reprofreedomarts.org