A Nation of Firsts

The First Generation Ensemble is based in Springfield, but its members — who range in age from 16 to 25 — originate from Haiti, Burundi, Rwanda, Puerto Rico, Guinea, South Sudan, and the U.S. “There are many ways to be ‘first generation,’” the youth arts and leadership program explains on its website. “Ensemble members may be the first in their family to grow up in the United States, the first to speak English, to graduate high school, go to college, to be incarcerated, be drug free, be openly GLBT, to break the silence, to be an artist, a feminist, or many other firsts.” This week, the group presents Tenderness, a physical theater piece that underscores the connection between racism, the school-to-prison pipeline, and mass incarceration. The show incorporates movement, original music by Charles Neville, and text spoken in Arabic, Mandingo, Kirundi, Creole, French, and English.

Tenderness: Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 4 p.m. Holden Theater, Amherst College, Amherst. (413) 542-3750, kofest.com. 

— Hunter Styles