Awareness Through Performance is a group of non-actors and non-actresses who come together to promote greater consciousness around social justice, diversity, and climate issues on the UW-L campus and beyond. They creatively challenge the status quo through skits, poems, and songs. These passionate individuals courageously share intimate parts of their lives in order to unplug privilege and heighten empathy and open-mindedness for those whose struggles go undermined every day due to associating with certain ethnic, gender and social groups.

The show opened up with a stepping dance and repetitive chanting of “We’ve got to do better,” as the stage crew went into battle for women’s rights, minority justice, and LGBT equality.

ATP crew member Danny Bicoy asked the crowd to, “allow [themselves] to feel wonderfully uncomfortable,” in order to dive deep into the subjects that were about to be portrayed.

Serious issues such as: stereotyping, the lack of importance for religions other than Christianity in our society, lack of maternity and paternity leave from businesses, lack of clean water and other life necessities for those living in poverty, ignorantly assuming characteristics of other people’s cultures, lack of acknowledging when you have an able-bodied privilege, criticizing women, etc. were acted out on stage. These were just a few of the topics brought up.

It takes a brave person to stand up on stage and share his or her experiences. When asked how he feels about sharing such personal things on stage, Mason Sonnenberg stated, “I’m so happy that [ATP] exists for me to be able to express myself through, and everyone else’s opinions through.”

In the audience, open-mindedness is said to be present and necessary. Student Molly Rosencrantz explained, it is “something you need to have as an audience member. It’s the willingness to challenge any possible previous preconceptions you may have that allows you to learn from these individuals.”

The last ATP event of the year will be an open mic on April 13th at 6 PM in the Entertainment Center of The Student Union.