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COURIER LIFE, APRIL 1–7, 2022
Documental theater program at
senior center offers glimpse of past
BY XIMENA DEL CERRO
An arts festival of life experiences
is in the making in North
Brooklyn.
After collecting countless
memories from members, a new
documental theater program at
the Ridgewood Bushwick Senior
Center will culminate in an early
summer film festival putting lifetimes
of experiences on display.
As part of the two-hour
weekly program, called “Brooklyn
Today/Brooklyn Hoy,” older
adults meet to recount their life
experiences, and share perspectives
on what it’s like to live in
Brooklyn as a senior today. The
group — currently made up of
10 seniors — is guided by actor
and artist-in-residence at CUNY
Queens College, James Clements,
who asks participants a series of
questions that evolve into conversations
in both English and
Spanish.
The group’s testimonies will
be shaped into short one-person
theater projects for their families
and friends to see.
Seniors are among the groups
most affected by the ongoing
coronavirus pandemic, and at
the start of the outbreak, countless
New York City elders were
forced to remain isolated for several
months, as COVID-19 posted
a more significant threat to them
than younger people.
Community organizations remain
one of the best sources of
help for older adults, according to
the National Council on Aging,
as they may help prevent depression
and significantly reduce the
risks of premature mortality.
“We sometimes don’t have
anyone to talk to, but here we
talk about everything,” said program
participant Nancy Jacome.
“We go back to our past and visit
memories that let us leave here
feeling happy.”
The program is designed to
first look into areas of interest
chosen by participants, and empower
them to speak out on current
issues in Brooklyn.
“We worry about how we are
going to pay rent and how everything
is so expensive now, how
there is violence in schools, and
streets are not safe,” said group
member Mercedes Ramos.
Later stages of the project will
help interviewees connect with
members of their communities
which they’ll then choose to interview
themselves. The results
will be turned into short theater
pieces in the format they choose
such as voiceovers, demonstrations
or monologues.
“We often talk about our countries
of origin, our childhoods,”
said Irma Betancourt, the program’s
English-to-Spanish translator.
“We want more people to
join because we know, here in
Bushwick, we have so much in
common.”
The program’s organizer, Clements,
said the project was originally
supposed to be community
centric, but within three
sessions, he found the artistic
value in the material shared by
the seniors.
“They are keeping me on my
toes as an artist, writer, and facilitator,”
said Clements, who
specializes in documentary theater.
“I think something that I
am guilty of — and our culture
is guilty of — is treating older
folks as if they’re invisible, or at
the very least as if their learning
and their growth is done. I don’t
think it’s necessarily done maliciously,
but it is far from that.
They have very strong opinions
and they have the experience to
back it up.”
Though the group is well into
the project, Clements said he’s
hoping to include even more seniors’
stories.
To join the program — which
takes place each Tuesday from 10
am to noon — older adults are invited
to visit the Stanhope Street
senior center, which also provides
a warm meal and transportation
for just $1.
“Here, I feel less stressed than
at home,” said Ridgewood Bushwick
Senior Center member Luis
Arriaga. “I feel like my mind
opens up and I think about stuff
other than my everyday problems.”
BY CATE CORCORAN
A Fort Greene offshoot of
the beloved Bed-Stuy eatery
Saraghina opened to the public
last week.
Inspired by turn-of-the-lastcentury
cafes in Milan, where he
was born, Saraghina founder (and
former creative director of fashion
firm Tocca) Edoardo Mantelli
promised Saraghina Caffè would
look like one of those essential
cultural institutions, and it does.
There is a high wainscot of
dark wood paneling throughout,
tall white ceilings, an imposing
bar with green marble top, a midcentury
modern chandelier, and
diamond-pattern black and white
floors. The menu features an extensive
raw bar, snacks and appetizers,
as well as more substantial
pastas and mains. The most
unusual sounding of the three
pizzas is the Sabauda, with escarole
and the creamy anchovy-garlic
sauce known as bagna càuda.
Desserts include meringue with
berries and whipped cream.
Unusually, they take reservations
for cocktails or dinner,
although not a few nights are already
booked weeks ahead. Parties
larger than two may have better
luck going in person to book a
table for later that evening.
The space, at 195 Dekalb,
was previously home to beloved
longtime restaurant Madiba.
Saraghina opened in Bed-Stuy in
2009 and expanded into two adjacent
spaces with a bakery and bar
in 2014 and 2015.
James Clements is a Scottish actor, writer and theatermaker based between
New York and the UK. He practices verbatim interviews and documentary theater.
James Clements
The new Fort Greene offshoot of the beloved BedStuy eatery Saraghina. Photo by Cate Corcoran
Of lives lived
Saraghina Caffè opens in Fort Greene
BROOKLYN
Turning a corner