A Teacher and Three Students from Art Share Los Angeles Help Bring “Phi’LA The Musical!” To Club Nokia

Los Angeles, CA – With the arrival of “Phi’LA: The Musical!”, three students from Art Share Los Angeles (Art Share) will help spread its message against racial tension in Los Angeles. After crisscrossing the city for weeks of rehearsals, they will premiere the new musical, written and directed by Jamal Speakes, Sr., at Club Nokia on October 12th.

A native of Philadelphia and a drama teacher at Susan Miller Dorsey High School in South Los Angeles, Speakes wrote the musical story of a black student who moves from Philadelphia to LA and falls in love with a Latina peer, stoking interracial tension. With the real threat of such violence looming over youth in LA, often exploding in the media, the fiction hits home for Art Share student David Estrada, a member of the show’s ensemble. “I hate violence… You are taught to take pride in your race (but) some people just take it too far.”

He and castmate Coreen Ruiz, both from East LA, agree: the musical teaches a strong lesson. “I hope the audience is all ages,” says Ruiz. “Everyone can learn from this.”

Estrada learned Hip-Hop and Jazz Theater at Art Share before joining the cast of “Phi’LA”. After a hesitant start in acting, Ruiz’s enthusiasm for the non-profit community center grew: “from the first day I was hooked!” Located in the Downtown Arts District, the center brings in students from across the city, blurring lines of race and class.

Roberto Perez, Jr. plays an East LA gang member in “Phi’LA,” but his own story is quite the opposite. He was drawn to Art Share after a hip-hop performance by instructor Ray Basa. “I stopped hanging around some of my bad influences,” he says, “because I didn’t want to miss a single day.”

Estrada, Ruiz, and Perez, as well as Art Share’s administrative assistant and teacher, Danyol Metcalf, have been rehearsing for weeks – giving Metcalf, an Art Share alumnus, the chance to be “both cast and mentor.” With its powerful message of racial unity and its cast of powerhouse students and performers, “Phi’LA” is estimated to draw an audience of over 7,000 from LAUSD students alone at the Club Nokia premiere, a red carpet event. “We have all worked very hard,” says Ruiz, “and this is such a great reward for all those long rehearsals.”

The Nokia event begins at 7:00 PM on October 12th, and the show will run from October 15th-18th at Dorsey High School’s renovated ICM Foundation Performing Arts Center. Premiere tickets are $25-35, or $10 with a student ID. For more ticketing information email philathemusical@yahoo.com and visit www.philathemusical.com.

Other “Phi’LA” supporters include; Rainbow PUSH Entertainment Project Los Angeles and Rev. Jesse Jackson, Marguerite P. La Motte (LAUSD District 3 Board Member), Mayor Villaraigosa, Lisa Nichols (Author), A Place Called Home, West Adams Neighborhood Council, Congresswoman Diane Watson, Councilman Herb Wesson, Gang Alternative Program/Gang Free, The Reverence Project, UNTYONE , Attain Design & Marketing Communication and Dave Wiesman (DAX foundation).

Boasting a 90% high school graduation rate, Art Share Los Angeles offers a free, multi-disciplinary art program, changing the lives of underserved teens. Through the collaborative work of instructors, social workers, and volunteers, the center operates during peak violence hours. It not only provides a safe haven for creative expression, but also offers a starting point for emerging artists, space for gallery shows, and low-income housing for artists. With 30,000 square feet of renovated warehouse space in the Downtown Artist District, Art Share Los Angeles serves as a community arts incubator, promoting cultural excellence and shaping lives through, art, education and community action.