And Still We Rise Productions, directed by Dev Luthra, produces heartfelt stories of individuals who use their onstage presence and acting as a therapeutic outlet to the various struggles they have overcome or continue to battle with.

In their first of four shows for their most recent tour, the cast kicked off the season with a spectacular and moving performance this past Sunday at the Emmanuel Episcopal Church.

“I think it went incredible, “ says Rebecca Greening, a board member of the grassroots theatre troupe. “The hard work and rehearsing really helped. It was interesting to see people act out their own stories.”

The cast members are comprised of individuals previously incarcerated and those who have been touched or experienced the prison system in some capacity.

The key themes and motifs the play focuses on revolve around everyday things we all experience including relationships, family, friends, and most importantly the love one needs to have for their self.

These plays do not only serve an educational purpose for the audience, but they also serve as a coping mechanism and creative expression for the cast who still deal with their own respective problems.

“Without And Still We Rise, I honestly don’t know where I’d be,” says Natalie Logan, a woman who battles the pain that comes along with losing one’s oldest son. “They are all my family.”

The actors not only found comfort in the acting out of their life stories, but they also found solace in working with each other.

Judy Davis puts all her failures down with the truth throughout the play. She says, “We are a miracle.”

The actors who were vulnerable to share their stories were a miracle. They carried a message to the audience that most people aren’t aware of.

“Incarceration allowed me to appreciate life,” says Eric Driscoll. “Regardless of it all, we are all doing time.”

Even in our normal lives, every member in the crowd was doing time. Not jail time, but every person in the audience was doing time if they were not appreciating life.

The And Still We Rise production, which began its sixth, original touring show was very crowd friendly and engaging. The show was just under an hour long with a 30-minutue talk back period where the audience was able to ask the casting members any questions or give any comments.

Along with sing-alongs and narratives directly at the audience, the stories of the casting members came to life. The show had ceased acting. The storytelling began to take on a form of reality.

These were real stories told by real people.

If director, Dev Luthra could sum up the first show of the season, he says it would be the voices of the stories. Each character had a unique story to tell. The voices made them much more poignant.

The troupe’s next show is scheduled for Boston College on April 13 at 2 p.m. Their first show was dedicated to Bob David, the managing director who had to step away due to personal reasons.

During the first show, David sat with a smile on his face in approval. And Still We Rise is doing a great job by using the talents of those people who have learned life lessons and are already socially aware, in order to educate teens and adults about the consequences, trials, and tribulations people face on their journey for truth.

According to Lois Frazier, “it is fun and a blessing to be alive to even tell this story.”

For more information on And Still We Rise, visit their website.