CO-DIRECTOR, CHOREOGRAPHER, PERFORMER | 2008
with NEW ARTICULATIONS DANCE THEATRE & COMMUNITY FOOD BANK OF SOUTHERN ARIZONA
The project used modern dance and personal and community stories to reveal how food connects us to each other, our environment, and our everyday lives. We Are What We Eat performances explored topics such as the industrial food system and food miles, the joys and benefits of gardening, overeating, waste & compost, harvesting native mesquite pods, cooking and recipes, breastfeeding, and grapefruit gleaning.
To create the performance, co-director Amanda Morse and I engaged middle- and high school students, Pascua Yaqui seniors, Mexican and Mexican-American adults in Family Literacy classes, and members of the general public in a “moving” dialogue about food issues through interactive workshops using movement and creative writing exercises. Of these participants, 14 went on to perform in the premiere production performed at the Community Food Bank and the Tucson Botanical Gardens in April 2008.