Selected Projects
Annexation and Assimilation: Residency at Harrison Park School
2016 Portland,Oregon
In this collaboration with Sabina Haque, artist in residence with City of Portland Archives and Records, I was invited to create theatre with fifth grade students at Harrison Park School to bring a live, human aspect to the exhibition about the history of East 82nd Avenue. The students learned techniques of Image Theatre as dialogue, explored themes of isolation and belonging, and performed shadow theatre at the art opening "Annexation and Assimilation."
Rising Waters: Community Displacement from Vanport to East Portland
2017
The vision for this project, initiated by community organizer and cultural worker Donovan Smith in partnership with Vanport Mosaic Project, was to create a visual re-creation of the story of the Vanport Flood, at the Portland Expo Center, the physical site where the city of Vanport had once been located, to be performed as part of the 2017 Vanport Festival.
The Dynamic Image:
Puppets, Boal and Cantastoria
2016 Badu, Kolkata
Hosted by Jana Sanskriti International Research and Resource Institute, I spent one week with a group of village teachers, creating Cantastoria— a form of picture story performance, and building giant puppets and then bringing them to life through dynamized Image Theatre.
Photo by Ian Wallace
Photo by Ian Wallace
Photo by PhoenixLotus Productions
Photo by Ian Wallace
Eastside Forum Project
2012-2013 East 82nd Avenue
The Eastside Forum Project was a neighborhood-based theatre project that focused on communities living, working, and accessing servies along East 82nd Avenue in Portland Oregon. With support from Regional Arts and Culture Council, Multnomah County Cultural Coalition, and SE Uplift, community members created an original interactive forum play "Lunch" exploring the experience of cast members who'd experienced homelessness, and inviting the audiences to step onto the stage and enact solutions.
Photo by Terence Dodge
"Work" Series, 2011-2012
The "Work" Series was a trio of interactive forum plays about work-place issues, developed from lived experiences of cast members. "A Certain Level of Presentation" explored sexual harassment in the restaurant industry. "One Up/One Down portrayed the competitive nature of workplace culture in an office setting under budget cuts. "Work-to-Welfare" examined the impact of job loss and unemployment on one's family and social relationships. In each piece, the audience was invited onto the stage to try to change the course of the play.
photo by Benjamin Ortega
Photo by Benjamin Ortega
Photo by Benjamin Ortega
photo by Benjamin Ortega
Immigration and Allyship
2007
Through partnership with local immigrants rights organizations, I co-facilitated a weekend of theatre creation around the topic of "Immigration and Allyship." Following the Portland Del Monte raid that placed more than 165 workers in detention by immigration authorities, separated families, and devastated local immigrant communities, we created theatre to brainstorm collectively how we can make sure Portland is a safe place for all members of our community.