WELCOME

Thank you for joining us for this annual performance gathering—the third iteration taking place in this space, located on unceded Dakota land in Mni Sota Makoce. Red Eye holds this space as a community resource that we steward with care, intention, and reciprocity. As a collective of working artists ourselves, each year we have the gift of accompanying twin cohorts of performance makers through their artistic process. As creation developed this year, our urgent attention has been drawn to the ongoing genocide in Palestine, our society’s complicity, and the practice of resistance. Many of the artists in this year’s festival brought forward proposals around futurisms, drawing on multiple contexts and lineages. We invite you, the audience, into this generosity—to imagine our shared futures moving towards transformation and liberation. 

The work that you are experiencing tonight grows out of Works-in-Progress, a program that has been nurturing the Twin Cities performance-making community since Red Eye was formed in 1983. Works-in-Progress annually invites early career artists to come together for six months of deep artistic inquiry and critical dialogue as they develop a short performance piece or a bite-sized portion of a larger work. Artists are selected through an open call and Artistic Director-led panel process; each year, we look for artists who are pursuing projects that reflect our core tenets of collaboration, experimentation, and critical discourse (expansively defined) and, collectively, embody a balance of varied artistic disciplines and practices, personal identities, and lived experiences. Throughout the winter and spring, artists are encouraged to take risks in a supportive environment; they develop their work in the same space where it is ultimately shared with audiences; and they have access to Red Eye’s equipment, as well as technical support, marketing support, and modest stipend. We are thrilled to share the fruits of this labor with you tonight, and invite you to share your thoughts with the artists after the performance.

Works-in-Progress is just the beginning of New Works 4 Weeks! Please be sure to come back and join us for full premieres of new interdisciplinary projects by Or (Laura) Levinson, Noelle Awadallah, Benny Olk, Masanari Kawahara, Dameun Strange, and Marcela Michelle, which form the Isolated Acts program. Details and full schedule can be found at redeyetheater.org/calendar.

Thank you for bringing your presence, attention, and reflection to this place, and to the work of the incredible artists in this year’s festival. 

Valerie, Rachel, and Emily
Red Eye Co-Artistic Directors

Katie Ka Vang

(UN)KNOWN Futures

Collaborator and performer: Juanita Sayavong Vang

Collaborator and performer: Laurine Chang

Song provided by Cassandra Xiong

What does one need to feel safe in community? What does the phrase "I am my ancestors's wildest dreams” invoke? How does one think about the future and making the world a better place, while moving themselves and their peoples towards a better place—but also staying present? (UN)KNOWN Futures is a transitory experiment about moving towards the future through the practice of noticing habits, and joy. It contains life-size collages from different mediums created in community with the collaborators and their environments. This experiment is the first exploration of a larger piece of work around resettlement and futures.

Katie Ka Vang is a Hmong American playwright and storyteller. Her work explores the complexity of cultures & communities, diaspora, dis-ease, and transformation. Her work includes AGAIN the musical, Fertile Grounds, WTF, Hmong Bollywood, 5:1 Meaning of Freedom; 6:2 Use of Sharpening, Fast FWD Motions, In Quarantine, FINAL ROUND, and Spirit Trust. Her work has been developed and presented at East West Players, Mixed Blood Theater, Pangea World Theater, Pillsbury House Theatre, Theater Mu, Leviathan Lab, Bushwick Starr, Brown University, The Royal Court Theatre, The Walker Art Center, Civic Ensemble, Out North Art House, and more. She is currently a 23/24 Constellation Fellow from the Center for Cultural Power working with Indigenous Roots. She received the 22/23 McKnight and 19/20 Many Voices fellowship at the Playwrights' Center.  She's received support from Jerome Foundation, NET, Knight Foundation, NPN, MRAC, MSAB, and Coalition of Asian American Leaders. She was a member of East West Players 21-23 Playwright's Group. She holds an MFA in Playwriting from Brown University.

Juanita Sayaovong Vang (she/they) is a Hmong multi-medium artist, organizer and advocate for cultural diversity and representation. She draws her inspiration from her lived experiences and building community.

Laurine Chang (she/they/elle) is a Twin Cities-grown Hmong American spoken word poet, performance artist, and writer. Calling this chapter of their life ReEmergence: Starting Again, Laurine believes that art work is heart work. <3

Thank yous: our friends and family, Cassandra, Juliet, Lu, Parisha, Emily, Val, Rachel, Indigenous Roots, The Center for Cultural Power, Jungle Theater, the 23/24 Constellation Fellow cohort.

陳璐 / Lu 

目擊, 見證,Testigo / Witness Witness Witness

Collaborators: Ruby Rich, Emilia Garrido, Saulaman Schlegel, Alys Ayumi Ogura

陳璐 / Lu is a dancer, choreographer, theater artist, and technician residing in Mini Sota Makoce. Lu holds a Bachelor of Arts from Macalester College, where they double majored in Psychology and Theater and Dance. Lu has continued to study Yorchhā, the contemporary Indian dance technique founded by  Ananya Dance Theatre, since 2019. In September 2023, Lu joined the Xchange (work-study) program at Zenon Dance School as well as participating in Zenon’s Zone performance program. In September 2023 Lu graduated from the Transformational Creative Strategies Training (TRCSTR MN), as part of the 2023 artist cohort, under the mentorship of Marcela Michelle. In 2021, Lu began working with Kat Purcell on Castles III, a multi-year experimental performance and research project exploring the exploitation of laborers. As a theater artist, Lu has performed with Lightning Rod Theater, 20% Theatre Company, and Pillsbury House + Theater. Dance credits include projects with the Shawngram Institute of Social Justice, Macalester Mainstage Theater, Twin Cities public parks, Tek Box Theater, and the MODArts’ Move To Change Festival in New York. Lu has danced in works by choreographers Wynn Fricke, Ashwini Ramaswany, Vanessa Cruz, Tori Breen, and Amanda Sachs. Lu’s movement and academic interests include dance movement therapy, art history, and tree science. In October 2023, Lu began a year-long mentorship program with dancer-choreographer, Alanna Morris, as a part of the I A.M. Arts Mentorship/Coaching Program, funded by the Minnesota State Arts Board. Lu is enthusiastic about embarking on a journey to develop into a seasoned professional artist, dedicated to the ongoing exploration and refinement of their artistic voice and practices.

Alys Ayumi Ogura (she/her) is first a storyteller and then a performance-maker through her movements, voice, and quirky humor. Ogura has been performing in Twin Cities since 2010, and she has worked with more than 40 artists—near and far—including Hauser Dance, Emily Johnson/Catalyst, ASDC, KEDC, Emily Gastineau, Sandrine Harris, Kata Juhasz, Pam Gleason, Pramila Vasudevan, and Laurie Van Wieren. Her newest work was performed at the 2024 Choreographers’ Showcase at the Keshet Center for the Arts, Albuquerque, NM. Ogura is a former Arts Organizing Institute Fellow (2017-18) through the Pangea World Theater, a Naked
Stages fellow (2021) through the Pillsbury House Theatre, and an Isolated Act cohort at the Red Eye Theater’s New Works 4 Weeks Festival (2023). She is a current steering-committee member for DanceMN. Ogura looks forward to summer 2024, filled with engagements at three outdoor dance festivals. Stay tuned!

Saulaman Schlegel received their MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts and Decolonial Praxis. With a focus on exploring the physical, emotional, and spiritual bodies through art, Saulaman seeks greater clarity and harmony within themselves and the world. Their practice centers on deepening interoception and expanding consciousness to contribute to the ultimate liberation of humanity. Saulaman lives and works in Imnižaska (St Paul) Mni Sota Macoke, self-employed in art packing, handling, and installation.

Ruby Rich is an aspiring interdisciplinary artist, who could not be more grateful to be a part of this piece of creative exploration and collective healing. Ruby would love to hear if and how this piece resonated with you creatively, emotionally, and/or somatically, after the show!

Emilia Garrido embarked on her dance journey at age 3 in Ecuador. At 14, after relocating to the U.S., she joined the school of St. Paul Ballet, graduating from their pre-professional program in 2019 under the direction of mentors such as Laura Greenwell, Helen Hatch, and Lirena Branitski. Prior to her college years, she was awarded the Twin Sky Dance Fellowship from James Sewell Ballet. Emilia pursued a major in Psychology at St. Kate’s and another in Theater and Dance at Macalester College. Professionally, she danced with Continental Ballet Company. Emilia has choreographed several pieces showcased in community spaces as well as venues such as the O'Shaughnessy Theatre. At Macalester, her honors piece, "A Place in Between," earned her the David Wick Choreography Award. Emilia's recent focus is on fostering inclusivity and accessibility in dance education through her community project, Ballet Explorers. Partnering with SPB and collaborating with local nonprofits and businesses, offers free introductory ballet classes to children from minoritized communities. Currently Emilia leads the children program at St. Paul Ballet and enjoys collaborating on dance projects with friends. 

Juliet Irving / Sonny Dee 

unb'come

wy'onchu b'come ya'own

naw

wy'onchu b'come meh

naw

wel' don' b'come guh

jus' on' b'come

a glimpse into the ongoing work I Am. We Are. witness the (un)becoming of jellefish wuman and angaman

a story a time a space where we have been and not yet gone

when we have gone and not yet been

we's deh b'tween

so speak wit ah hebby tongue an'dem feet plan'd wide

youse got Geechee 'n yo bluh'd

ain'chu kno dat?

why'on'chu unb'come wit meh

Music credits:

“Perpetual Motion” by Rene Ford, Mankwe Ndosi, J. Otis Powell, Kevin Washington, Eliezer Freitas Santos, Jeffrey Bailey, Alicia Wiley

“Empath (Bones)” by Marcus Amaker and Quentin E. Baxter

“Gyroscope” by Boards of Canada

Juliet Irving (she) aka Sonny Dee (they) is a Black, femme multimedia artist, choreographer, writer, and graphic designer hailing from Monetta, South Carolina. She is invested in cultivating radical imagination and practices of tenderness in rural BIPOC communities with a multidisciplinary practice originating from a childhood spent crafting performances with her sister for a dedicated audience of cows. This evolved into a collaborative practice of immersing audiences and performers into worlds of possibility integrating environmental installation, improvisation, and audience interaction. Sonny earned an MFA in Embodied Interdisciplinary Praxis and a Master’s Certificate in African & African-American Studies from Duke University, along with a BA in Dance Studies and BFA in Graphic Design from Appalachian State University. Juliet has presented work at the Schaefer Center, HOW Space, Katherine Smith Gallery, Duke University, the American Dance Festival, the International Conference on Movement and Computing, and the Collegium of African Diaspora Dance. She has also performed alongside McKnight Distinguished Artist, Douglas R. Ewart, as well as Thomas F. DeFrantz and SLIPPAGE, and in work choreographed by Sherone Price, Joanna Kotze, and Dante Brown. In 2023, they joined Ananya Dance Theatre as a collaborative artist and ensemble member for the premiere of "Micchil Amra: We are the Procession." She invites collaborations, daydreams, and imaginings, and her work can be viewed at www.julietirving.com.

To my ancestors, thank you for your joy, your dreams, your love. Thank you for all that you endured for me to dance in this moment. I do not dance alone. A special thank you to my family for being my inspiration, especially Jalen for forever saying grehday. Y'all gift me with your input, patience, imagination, and support each and every time. Also, thank you Lauren Reed and those at Red Eye for their feedback throughout this process, and a final shoutout to anyone who has ever tried writing out their dialect or accent for others to read/speak accurately. Shit's hard.

Parisha Rajbhandari 

In scarce

Performer/collaborator: Noelle Awadallah

Music: Aman Mali

Parisha Rajbhandari is a Nepali dance artist residing in Mni Sota. She explores movement through vibrations, sounds, rhythms, body memory and spinal articulation. Her choreographic process is grounded in collaboration and collective action. Parisha has been a dance artist with Ananya Dance Theatre since 2019. She trains, tours, and participates in community engagement with ADT. She has performed in three premieres in 2021, 2022 and 2023 with Ananya Dance Theatre. She also offers Yorchhā classes through Shawngram Institute for Performance & Social Justice. She performed ADT’s Nün Gherāo:Surrounded by Salt at Jacob’s Pillow in May 2023. She has performed at the Association of Performing Arts Professionals, Kennedy Center, O’Shaughnessy Auditorium, Cowles Center, American College Dance Association and Minnesota State University Productions. She received her BA in dance from Minnesota State University, Mankato in 2020 and is furthering her academic career as an MFA candidate in Dance and Choreography at MSU, Mankato.

Noelle Awadallah نوال (she/her) is a Palestinian-American dancer, improviser, choreographer, and farmer residing in Mni Sota Makoce (Minneapolis). Her work as the Co-Artistic Director of Body Watani Dance with Leila Awadallah is underscored by five years (and counting) of dancing with Ananya Dance Theatre, a BFA from Columbia College Chicago (2018), and her daily pursuit of a “land-based life,” which emerges from sumud — a Palestinian ideology guiding steadfast perseverance rooted in land. For Noelle, sumud drives her creative practice to build and uphold worlds through ancestral remembrance, in between-ness, multidirectional attention, storytelling, resistance and liberation practices, futuristic imagination as a strategy, and tending to her reciprocal relationships with land and non-human beings.