Voyage Ohio: Conversations with Josy (2020)
…I’ve been obsessed with what happens when you include community in the theatre creation process. I started working on a project called HOME in 2019. My neighborhood, West Hill, has an interesting history and zoning; however, the residents aren’t very connected. So, I spent time surveying residents and asking them if they would want to be interviewed about what HOME means to them. With an ensemble, we dissected those interviews and created a site-specific performance designed to happen inside of a house in West Hill.
https://voyageohio.com/interview/conversations-with-josy-jones/
Akron Life Magazine: Stage Craft/Playwright — Reimagining the Village (2019)
To reclaim that narrative, Jones developed and taught a free playwriting course called Reimagining the Village. Residents crafted plays inspired by public spaces in Cascade Village. When they performed the works in June at the village’s Elizabeth Park and nearby steps, attendees remarked the neighborhood wasn’t like what they heard either….
https://www.akronlife.com/arts-and-entertainment/stage-craft/
The Devil Strip: “Reimagining the Village: Bringing Theatre Right to your Doorstep” — Reimagining the Village (2019)
It’s Saturday. Feb. 9. 10:30 am. The activity room in one of the buildings of the Cascade Village neighborhood holds four African-American women ranging in age: 20s. 30s. 60s. The space fills with warmth under the homely conversation the women bring forth.
Josy Jones, Jenniva Cummings, Morgan Brady, and Barbara Mitchell-King are their names. They are mothers, daughters, sisters, grandmothers. But, at the core of their beings, they are creatives with the passion to make art.
And so, theatre class begins.
https://thedevilstrip.com/reimagining-the-village-bringing-theatre-right-to-your-doorstep/
Akron Beacon Journal: “Akron-Centric Play Seeks to Bring City’s Neighborhoods Closer” — Rebranding the City: A Humanizing Tour of Akron (2018)
It all started with a series of conversations.
And a pair of playwrights hope a play based on these conversations that is uniquely Akron spurs further conversations in the city.
Rebranding the City: A Humanizing Tour of Akron was born out of a Knight Foundation-funded $240,000 grant that is seeking to foster civic engagement and neighborhood vibrancy through art-related projects and activities.
The 11th Hour: “New/Native: Meet Josy Jones” — (2016)
Spend an afternoon wandering around downtown Macon and you’ll bear witness to a fascinating variety of spaces, from newly constructed lofts to impeccably gorgeous architecture to dilapidated, mysterious abandoned industrial buildings. The various sights definitely inspire thoughts like; What used to be here? Who lived here a hundred years ago? Is this floor going to fall in if I step on it? What most people won’t think is “Man, wouldn’t it be great to have a theatre performance here?
Knight Foundation: “Chameleon Village Theatre Company in Macon, Ga., Brings Site-specific Theater to The 567” — Cope (2015)
The site of its first artistic challenge will be The 567 Center for Renewal. Chameleon Village and the Knight Arts grantee have partnered on the company’s premiere performance.
“This event is the official launch of Chameleon Village,” Melissa Macker, executive director of The 567, said. “The mission of the fledging theater company is to use site-specific theater to bring new appreciation to underused areas, create a venue for collaboration between local artists and businesses, and provide an outlet for local talent. By teaming up, The Chameleon Village and The 567 hope to spark new interests in the arts community.”