After one of their sorority sisters is raped at a frat party, Brandi and Kara organize a DIY self-defense workshop for their peers. Together the students practice using their bodies as weapons, wrestle with their desires, and learn the limits of self-defense. Challenged to determine what they want and how to ask for it, the students must ultimately face the insidious ways rape culture steals one’s body and sense of belonging. With sharp humor and brutal honesty, writer Liliana Padilla explores the intersection of sex, community, and what it means to heal in a violent world. Maya Blackstone directs this Yale Drama Series prize-winning play to close out the landmark 40th anniversary Kern Shakespeare Festival season.
Please note, How to Defend Yourself contains depictions of physical violence, explicit language/actions, intense discussion of sex and sexual assault, discussions of rape but never seen on stage, bruising/blood.
By Liliana Padilla
Directed by Maya Blackstone
Performance Schedule:
Thursday, October 17 at 7:30 PM
Friday, October 18 at 7:30 PM
Saturday, October 19 at 7:30 PM
Sunday, October 20 at 2:00 PM
Location:
Edward Simonsen Black Box Theater
Prices:
$16 General Admission
$10 Staff / Students / Seniors / Veterans
About This Event
After one of their sorority sisters is raped at a frat party, Brandi and Kara organize a DIY self-defense workshop for their peers. Together the students practice using their bodies as weapons, wrestle with their desires, and learn the limits of self-defense. Challenged to determine what they want and how to ask for it, the students must ultimately face the insidious ways rape culture steals one’s body and sense of belonging. With sharp humor and brutal honesty, writer Liliana Padilla explores the intersection of sex, community, and what it means to heal in a violent world. Maya Blackstone directs this Yale Drama Series prize-winning play to close out the landmark 40th anniversary Kern Shakespeare Festival season.
Please note, How to Defend Yourself contains depictions of physical violence, explicit language/actions, intense discussion of sex and sexual assault, discussions of rape but never seen on stage, bruising/blood.
By Liliana Padilla
Directed by Maya Blackstone
Performance Schedule:
Thursday, October 17 at 7:30 PM
Friday, October 18 at 7:30 PM
Saturday, October 19 at 7:30 PM
Sunday, October 20 at 2:00 PM
Location:
Edward Simonsen Black Box Theater
Prices:
$16 General Admission
$10 Staff / Students / Seniors / Veterans
Getting There
Bakersfield College - Edward Simonsen Black Box Theater
1801 Panorama Dr
Bakersfield, 93305
United States