Nonprofit theater makes strides with community outreach and new musical
New Works SA, a San Antonio-based nonprofit theater, plans to premiere its new project, “Girl In The Cocoon,” in July. The company was born in 2019 from the idea of Trinity students Wren Ramos, Toni Tresca and Scarlett Patiño. As part of its mission statement, New works SA is dedicated to helping develop theater in underserved communities through educational programs and performances.
Currently, New Works SA has six senior executives, including CEO Wren Ramos, Creative Director Toni Tresca, Chief Marketing Officer Megan McGuire, Chief Operating Officer Taylor Condron, and two recent additions, Education Coordinators Joe Jones and Christina O’Keefe.
Communications and theater major Ramos was eager to talk about New Works SA’s mission and all the work they’ve done since their last production, ‘The Comedy of Romeo and Juliet,’ which they performed in July. 2021.
“Our mission here with New Works is to provide accessible theater performance and theater education to students in schools and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Essentially, we want to create shows for kids aged 12-22 that can get them excited about doing theater and hopefully get them interested in theater in their own schools. And if they don’t have those programs, to give them the education they would need to be able to get involved,” Ramos said.
New Works SA was one of four finalists in the Louis H. Stumberg New Venture Competition, a two-part Shark Tank-style experience that supports compelling student start-ups each year. Contest winners receive $50,000 and access to experienced mentors and successful entrepreneurs.
Tresca, a Trinity alum who graduated in December 2021, said in an interview that the Stumberg Competition was an eye-opening experience for them.
“We changed our focus in terms of the type of shows we wanted to put on, and also throughout that process we realized that we wanted to change some of our roles even – in what we were each focused on. . I was initially interested in doing more business, and Wren was doing more creative things, but thanks to Stumberg’s summer accelerator program, we changed that, and now Wren is more focused on business. , and I focus more on the creative part of the business,” Tresca said.
New Works SA’s upcoming upcoming production, a sci-fi musical titled “Girl In The Cocoon,” was recently officially cast, with six cast lined up as well as key crew positions. “Girl In The Cocoon” presents an allegorical account of what it means to understand your identity and your success as an artist in a system that uses you to make profit.
“There are these three special characters: the girl in the cocoon, the frog and the spider, which are used by this company to create content, just endless streams of content. The girl in the cocoon tries to succeed and to make an impact in the world and to connect with people, but she has to struggle with that in the midst of this company that is obviously trying to exploit her for what she does. The whole plot revolves around that.” , Ramos said.
In our digital age world of TikTok, Instagram and internet celebrity fame, the game seems to match reality as a person on the internet. Ramos hopes an audience will find comic relief through the important and serious issues that are raised in the play.
“It’s a very silly show, although some of these themes might feel a little heavy,” Tresca said.
Scheduled to premiere at the Attic Theater in late July, “Girl In the Cocoon is a production not to be missed. Donate to New Works SA here to support its mission of giving people the opportunity to watch and learn about theater no matter where they’re from or how much money they have.