STAGES is a moving and surprisingly funny vérité exploration of the unexpected power of the simple act of storytelling. In New York City’s oldest community center, a group of older Puerto Rican women and inner-city youth come together to create an original play out of the stories of their lives. Weaving together themes of immigration, identity, aging and coming of age, STAGES offers an intimate portrait of an unlikely ensemble, transformed by the liberating power of their own stories– first as they are spoken across generations, and later when they are performed for a sold-out show.
A rare feat in non-fiction filmmaking, STAGES was collaboratively directed by twelve members of the award winning Meerkat Media Collective. The film is being distributed in the educational market through the longest running filmmaker owned distribution cooperative, New Day Films.