The Encyclopedia Show AZ
September 8, 2014
Topic: Christmas
October 30, 2014
Topic: Saints
November 17, 2014
Topic: Invasive Species
The Encyclopedia Show is a monthly, multi-genre, age-integrated presentation of creative performances on a central theme taken from an ACTUAL encyclopedia. Each contributor is assigned a specific subset of the central theme on which to write and perform. Participating artists perform poems, monologues, songs, rants, etc… Quirkiness and creativity is welcomed, as are fashionable falsehoods.
The Encyclopedia Show is also a world-wide event, started in Chicago by Robbie Q and Shanny Jean, it now encompasses at least a dozen cities!
The AZ show takes place at the Empty Space in Tempe and is sponsored by The Hugh Downs School of Human Communication. The creative team includes Nick Klemp, Michelle Hill, Brandon Ferderer, Andy Stone, Beth Clarke, Dwayne Holmes, Adam Jarvie.
Family Cries: transforming grief through poetry and music
Written and performed by John Genette
Produced by Jennifer Linde
October 12, 2014
One-hour performance, discussion follows.
In 1945, a young mother lost her first child to leukemia. With no one to talk to, she wrote poetry to express her profound grief. Years later, her instinct to use art for healing was passed on to her son, John, who processes grief by writing songs -- even humorous ones! As part of his own journey, John has adapted his mother’s poems as song lyrics set to his original acoustic music. Bringing her heartfelt work to life in another dimension has deepened his appreciation of her creative process and how it helped her cope with seemingly unbearable loss.
John has explored these themes in two earlier shows at The Empty Space, both directed by Jennifer Linde. He shared some of his original songs in the 2004 production, “Outlets: making music as a way out of the ‘Dark Night of the Soul,’” and he presented his mother’s poems in the 2010 production “Evening Song” with Linda Park-Fuller. “Family Cries” weaves the artistry of mother and son together in a one-hour presentation that includes new material and spans nearly 70 years of family experiences.
John will be presenting “Family Cries” at Hesston College in Hesston, Kansas on October 15-16. To help him refine the presentation for that event, the audience will be invited to stay after the performance for feedback and discussion.
I’m One of Those Women: Testimonies of Stillbirth, Abortion and What Happens When Pregnancy Ends
Written and performed by Suzanne Pullen
Co-directed by Jennifer Linde and Suzanne Pullen
October 22,23,24,25, 2014
Each night features a different one-act multi-media performance based on the lived experiences of real women whose pregnancies have ended prior to birth. Performances will be accompanied by a Civil Dialogue-style audience discussion about the political and social issues surrounding the topic of pregnancy ending. Saturday night will feature a culmination of the Wednesday through Friday performances and a talkback session with the performers.
Cornucopia
November 7, 2014
Stauffer 318
Cornucopia is an annual performance/reading hour featuring faculty, graduate students, and staff.
The Undergraduate Student Showcase
December 5, 2014
An evening of performances from the undergraduate performance studies classes: COM241, COM 341, COM442, COM445.
Witnessing Masculinity
Written and performed by Frankie Marchi
Directed by Brandon Ferderer
December 6 & 7, 2014
This autobiographical narrative invites the audience to explore the spaces between 'normal' and 'variant' performances of masculinity. Aside from cultural conventions, Frankie Marchi uses his identity as a performer to engage how his body and voice are witnessed by the performing audience, and how that audiencing both challenges and re-inscribes masculine constructs.