UCSB’s Launch Pad program, which incubates and produces new theatrical works-in-progress, presents a play about activism by Melinda Lopez. This story follows a group of people who take a weekly yoga class, then stand still in the city square in silent protest. Directed by Risa Brainin, the play asks the question, “How do you keep your balance in tumultuous times?”
Lopez originally conceived of this concept in 2011, during the Arab Spring protests. Lopez says she was inspired by the ordinary people across the Middle East who were standing in solidarity to demand change. When she revisited the play in 2024, she says she had no concept of how the summer of 2026 would feel. “I feel like I set out to write a play about the future,” she says, “and I ended up making a documentary.”
Because Launch Pad is a preview production, Lopez is in the active process of honing the play as she sees versions of it playing out in rehearsal. She calls Standing Still a show that explores nonviolent resistance and the idea of “being present without being on the front lines.” It celebrates those dedicated people who stand up despite having very little power.
Brainin calls it a “funny, moving, reflective play” that explores where different types of people can fit into the web of activism in their community. See the show, starring UCSB students and faculty, May 13-26, at UCSB’s Performing Arts Theater. See theaterdance.ucsb.edu/news/standing-still.
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