Cutout silhouette of person with their hands up. The silhouette is filled with text in black with a few key words in red, reading  "A protest song sung in the key of high octane spoken word stanzas."

Hands Up Hoodies Down

SEASON 28 | SEPTEMBER 2015
 

Hands Up Hoodies Down

Conceived and Directed by Zell Miller III
Presented by The VORTEX
View photos from the production here.

 

Hands Up Hoodies Down is a protest song sung in the key of high octane spoken word stanzas exploding through tears and heartache; it's the balled fist full of possibilities; it’s the feeling of the day after the riot and no place to buy groceries; it’s the mother's moan and the father's wail. How do we react when human beings are taken out of existence?

“Hands Up Hoodies Down blends slam poetry, music, rap, movement, and improvisation together for a poignant piece with a message as loud and clear as the chants at rallies nationwide: #BlackLivesMatter”.
— Austin Chronicle, March 2015

CAST

T- Fly, Kann, Da’Shade Moonbeam, Zell Miller III, Chelsea Manasseri, Sadé Jones, and the Ashé Arts Collective.

PRODUCTION TEAM

Conceived, directed, and co-written by Zell Miller III, with contributions from Chelsea Manasseri. Choreography by Sadé Jones.


This project is funded and supported in part by VORTEX Repertory Company, by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts, and by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development.