Philadelphia Young Playwrights gave 17 high school students across Philadelphia the chance to see their original work come to life on stage with professional actors, blocking, light and sound. One of these talented students was Esperanza Academy’s own Adrian Vega. The culmination of these efforts resulted in the 2015 Young Voices Monologue Festival at Interact Theater. Phindie’s Allision Rickert wrote:
“Director David O’Connor addressed some of these issues in the program: “These writers all have something important to say that needs to be heard right now. In many cases they have taken a risk to say the hard thing.”
Saying the hard thing, indeed. In Payback by Adrian Vega, a mother (the energetic Ife Foy) pleads with her angry younger son, begging him to stay away from the violent gang life that had already killed his older brother. Giving a voice to the kind of pain that is so rarely heard, many of these pieces carry a gravity that can hush rooms.”