World Premiere: The Legend of the Waitress and the Robber by Concrete Temple Theater, Playfactory Mabangzen, and Yellowbomb (South Korea)

May 21–22. The groundbreaking creative collaboration between Concrete Temple Theatre, Seoul, Korea-based Playfactory Mabangzen and Yellowbomb, in partnership with Korean Cultural Center NY, will develop in residency and premiere at PS21. Tickets $30; $20 for PS21 members; $10 for students.

“Imagine if you will, there’s a world much like ours. Maybe in the future. Or maybe even now. A world where every human lives separate and alone. The only interaction allowed – is on a phone.” These lyrics are from the opening song in The Legend of The Waitress & The Robber, written two years before Covid washed up on our shores. Its playful, irreverent look at the isolation inherent in our complicated contemporary culture is made even more urgent now, after two years of pandemic separation.

Set in a dystopian society, The Legend of The Waitress & The Robber is a comic-book-style mash-up inspired by Friedrich Schiller’s play The Robbers and the Korean novel The Story of Hong Gildong, both Robin Hood-style stories of individuals betrayed by their families. With nods to Weill and Brecht, the characters sing and dance as they fight for what they believe, challenging the timeworn concepts of family and perceptions of ownership and justice. Following their three-week-long residency at PS21, the groundbreaking creative collaboration between Concrete Temple Theatre, Seoul-based Playfactory Mabangzen, and Yellowbomb present the world premiere at PS21’s Pavilion Theater.