The Jersey Devil

Description

After several months of collaborating, promoting, and organizing, the early efforts and goals of the Adrian Cervantes Mejia Fund have been realized. The ACM Fund is happy to announce the very first recipients of Adrian’s Project: Philadelphia-based ensemble, The Berserker Residents with their original show The Jersey Devil.

Since announcing the creation of a memorial fund last year to honor the life and talent of Adrian C. Mejia, co-directors Eleni Zaharopoulos and Adolfo C. Mejia have been busy trying to make Adrian's Project a reality. Adrian’s Project is an annual grant giving performing arts competition that was created as a way to help emerging, performing artists gain exposure. Adrian died in a hit and run at age 29, right at the beginning of a very promising artistic career.
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The Jersey Devil is an original, fast-paced, 60-minute telling of the myth of the New Jersey Devil.
A band of traveling sideshow freaks has caught the devil and will unveil it to the audience after
presenting its story. Done in a burlesque cabaret meets three-ring circus meets Laugh-In format, this
three-man tour-de-force is told in the style of melodramatic farce mixed with the bloody Grand Guignol.
The ensemble draws from techniques in clowning, puppetry, movement, music, and mask to bring this
heightened world to life.

The show begins as the audience enters the space. As they take their seats, an opening act of
dustbowl folk-singers (all played by Sarah McCarron) welcomes the patrons to the space. The show
swiftly changes energy as the cast of sideshow entertainers launch into the telling of the myth of the
Jersey Devil, all the while hyping up his reveal at the end. The audience is led through a medley of wild
scenes that depict the origins, creation, and birth of the Jersey Devil as well as riffs on first-hand
historical accounts of the Devil itself. The show culminates in a climactic event that entertains and
terrifies audiences alike. Bradley K. Wrenn guides the audience through each story as the miserly
emcee, with David Johnson by his side as his meek, Quasimodo-esque assistant with a tender spot for
the creature. Justin Jain completes the ensemble as Miss Ling - the greatest actress in the world -
seamlessly portraying multiple genders, species, and celestial beings in every story.

More Info

Link

http://www.acmfund.org

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