This weekend, non-profit educational theater program New Works SA will present its rendition of the Tony Award-winning musical Urinetown by Greg Cotis with Mark Hollman.
The musical is a dark, absurdist comedy that comments on class war, water scarcity, fascism, the maniacal mindsets cultivated by capitalism and consumerism, and Malthusian population control. Set in a dystopian society where a water crisis is corruptly mismanaged by a government in bed with corporate interests, Urinetown‘s most tragic aspect has to be its searing relevance to our moment.
In the society of the musical, the scarcity of water has led a greedy corporation called Urine Good Company to a monopoly on the paid public toilets that everyone is forced to use. The poor are, obviously, the most affected by this. They face harsh punishment if they break the rules. This leads to an ultimately disastrous rebellion led by a man named Bobby Strong.
Tickets available for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at New Works SA
In an admirable instance of putting notions from art directly into practice, New Works has partnered with the City of San Antonio’s Office of Sustainability to become a part of the Climate Ready Neighborhood program. That allows New Works to contribute as a hub of information and tangible support in the event of water or other climate-related crises. The group is also producing this show with 100 percent reused (or soon to be reused) materials as a part of its educational commitment to leading the young people it serves (ages 8-17) by example.
New Works’ CEO Wren Ramos, who co-founded the program in 2021, told Deceleration that the devastating freeze of that same year was the first time she had truly realized the need for climate crisis prep and organizing.
Accelerating droughts, fires, storms, and heat waves driven by the climate crisis the world over have her asking herself a simple but terrifying question: “What happens if the faucet just stops running?”
She said that centering concepts of sustainability within this musical production has shown students and teachers alike just how wasteful most theater productions are.
“Theater as a whole concept just goes through things so quickly,” Ramos said.
New Works, better priorities
Shortly after founding New Works in 2021, Ramos and two others were named finalists in the Louis H. Stumberg New Venture Competition run by Trinity University’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. (The university now allows New Works to use its Ruth Taylor Theater building free of charge.)
Her vision, which has since grown more expansive in scope, was then to “use theater as a vehicle to address the problem of inaccessibility in the arts.” To that end, New Works offers free shows and plenty of scholarships and payment options to students. As of now, the group is running, with a very small crew, a fall and spring musical and four summer camps.
But accessibility isn’t only about reducing financial barriers. Ramos said that most theater programs are “so product-based that they become not about uplifting students.” In contrast, Ramos sees her program as offering a safe haven for students to build a community and become a voice for young creatives in San Antonio. Thus, New Works follows five pillars in their efforts: community, dedication, creativity, growth, and empathy.
In casting and directing, New Works seeks to challenge the notion of typecasting, insisting instead that growth and understanding are often more available when we work outside of our comfort zones and the boxes society may try to stuff us inside. They work to empower students to play roles that they can grow into and not let physical appearance, gender identity, ability, or even previous experience hinder student efforts.
As a no-cut program that eschews the traditional audition process in favor of collectivity, New Works nevertheless puts on high-quality shows.
“With our casting and direction we want to say something to San Antonio and to our kids,” Ramos said.
Jo Jones, education and artistic director with New Works since 2022, said that they believe “offering agency and a chance to use their voice” to students is at the heart of the fact that the program has enjoyed growth and a high retention rate over the past few years.
They said that youth theater programs sometimes pay lip service to education and empowerment but actually reinforce harmful patterns in their quest for high enrollment numbers and fast production speeds.
Jones noted that, with Urinetown as well as past shows, students are encouraged to dig deeper into relevant issues and engage each other and their teachers in conversation.
Instead, Jones sees their work with New Works as helping “demystify the artform of theater” for students and “get back to the roots, where theater is all about self-expression and self-exploration.”
“They are going to engage with this subject matter anyway, because it is their world, so this gives them the chance to steer conversation that is safe, healing, and productive,” Jones said. “Arts are all about tackling the uncomfortable.”
What the kids are saying
To understand the participant perspective, Deceleration sat down with Brittany and Elena, both 15-year-old students who have been with New Works since 2023 and are a part of the Urinetown cast.
Brittany found the camp by chance, as she searched the web for a July camp to warm up for a particular fall audition.
Elena was pushed into that first camp by her parents, because, she said with a laugh, she “had no friends and no hobbies.”
Initially, she balked at the idea. “I was like ‘ugh, theater!? With those theater kids!?’ And, I’ve been one of those theater kids ever since,” she said.
While both students began with New Works under different circumstances and with, it would seem, short-term designs, they have in common the fact that they are still here—now by choice instead of chance.
The welcoming and empowering environment charmed them both, they said, and led them to feel part of a community, even though the camp was only a few weeks long. Both also cited the environment created by faculty as something special.
“Jo and Andrew [Walker (music/operations director)] were some of the kindest adults that I had ever met, and they treated me like a kid but also took me seriously and listened to me,” Elena said.
Brittany, for her part, said that despite being “a nervous wreck, like physically shaking” at the onset of that first experience, working with Jo in particular was immediately impactful for her.
“Jo is one of my biggest support systems and the best mentor I could ever ask for, whether that’s with musical theater or just as a person,” Brittany gushed.
“They prioritize community over other things that some big theaters do. They really care about the students more than, like, putting on an expensive, perfect show. They make sure it is a learning experience and a good experience,” Elena said.
Both students spoke about the chemistry and connection in the community, noting that it does more for them than just making their shows awesome.
“Everybody has a place at New Works, no matter your race, or your school, or your class, or your gender identity … it’s inclusivity at its finest,” Brittany said.
Talking of Urinetown, Brittany explained that trying to do the show with sustainability restrictions made it clear to her just “how much money and product is being wasted without you even realizing it” in typical productions.
Elena said that the musical represents “what an educational show can be at its best, because it brings so much awareness, and the show is so self-aware of the issues it covers, but it is also absurdly hilarious.”
Both students felt their work on this play helped them process some of the stress associated with the climate crisis in their lives.
Elena offered a summative note after a laugh-induced sigh—the joy is abundantly evident around all aspects of the rehearsal that I visited: “School is not always a safe place to be who you are. And we live in Texas, so you know we can’t always be ourselves maybe. But students are the actual heart of New Works.”
