CONTACT: a performance installation
In collaboration with 100 Faces of War Experience
directed by Krista DeNio
Performed by: Nicholas Chavez, Samantha Francis, Kev’n Garcia, Laura Markis Johnson, Patrick Mack, Lyle Phipps
Music by Patrick Mack & Susan Oetgen

CANAL GALLERY
380 Dwight St, Holyoke, MA 01040
www.thecanalgallery.com
TICKETS $10-15 (at the door)
SEPTEMBER 10, 7pm
SEPTEMBER 11, 4pm *followed by a Public Conversation moderated by Artists In Context (www.artistsincontext.org) & reception
SEPTEMBER 16 & 17, 7pm & 18, 4pm
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=144524465638895

Contact, is an interactive performance installation, directed by Krista DeNio, in an effort to create a dialogue space in which veterans of war & civilians can engage with one another in conversation on what we have in common & what we don't.
A collaboration with Matt Mitchell's 100 Faces of War Experience , [100FacesOfWarExperience.org], Contact is performed by a mixed ensemble of veterans (portrayed in the 100 Faces project) and civilian performers. The performers reveal potent experiences shared in the project statements -- fixed moments in time, during the Iraq & Afghanistan wars. The action weaves together the ensemble’s personal experiences & testimonies through performance moments; choreographic explorations based in personal movement styles & Suzuki Theater technique; and the live winding vocals & guitar of Patrick Mack, with additional music & sound by Susan Oetgen. We ask ourselves: what do we want from one another; what do we need? How do we see each other? How much do we share in common, and what separates us? How do we each relate to war--- then & now.
Audience interaction is intentionally designed as a pathway through specific territories in the space, directing audience relationship with the action. The installation is spatially informed by the large gallery archways, brick walls, and the intention to create a reverent space for interaction. An evolving investigation, this is the first draft of this performance installation, and we look forward to learning more with our audiences, about which structures best create space for audience engagement with the portraits & the live humans.
This project is a model in the making, for the use of multiple communities.