Performance Facing Hybrid Social Problems

Feb 3—May 5 | Urbana, Illinois

This describes a past SDAS event. See here for upcoming events.

This spring 2014, the School for Designing a Society invites you to a continuing work session, building on the collaborative composition project from the fall. Newcomers are welcome to the project.

In December of last year we gave a showing of two programs of work in progress, a children’s show and an adult show.

The starting point was consideration of “hybrid problems” — social problems that are difficult to solve partially because there are widespread campaigns to deny the existence of the problem: (1) human-generated global climate change and its contributing factors; (2) racism in its various forms–mass incarceration, the war on drugs, unequal access to housing; (3) the need for experimental art as social input. The ongoing project is to see how work on one problem might inform the work the others.

We will continue to compose, write, research, revise, rehearse, film, edit, create puppets and props for the two touring programs, as we take them to schools, farmers’ markets, churches, board meetings, living rooms. The overall attempt is to create connections that will disturb the problematic status quo into desired change.

Concepts and vocabulary of the School for Designing a Society will be presented within the context of composing.

hybrid

Why THREE different questions? Why don’t we concentrate on ONE problem area?

We’re interested to see what happens when problems from different domains are bundled together: standing in unfamiliar company, does a problem open up in a new way? close down in a new way? Scientific method has taught us to tame a problem by reducing it to its parts. What if we don’t tame problems, but unleash the snarl in each of them by placing them, snarling, in the company of other snarls (problems)?

What if we built a movement at the intersection of the social justice and the ecology movements, of entrepreneurship and activism, of inner change and social change? What if we didn’t just have hybrid cars—what if we had a hybrid movement? —Van Jones, The Green Collar Economy

Is this a project to just make a political-type composition based on three different themes?

The three themes, in combination, are meant to monkey-wrench the ‘just’—if we work experimentally, then what we do won’t easily belong to the category political or ‘theme’; if we work on climate change and its relentless clock, then we won’t seem timelessly experimental or anti-racist; if we work on anti-racism, then the dynamics of power-over will saturate into experimentation and relentless clock-ing. A design.

Do I already need to be a composer, or performer, or writer, or researcher etc to participate?

No, but you will need to learn to compose, perform, write, research etc.

Can I get credit for this collaborative work with my home university?

We can work with you and your home university to see if our program can be considered a for-credit program.

Is there a cost to this program?

We ask participants to “chip in”. Participants in this program will benefit from a context set up for collaboration and touring, as well as from presentations and individual work offered by guest artists/presenters/activists. We intend to offer the presenters an honorarium for their work. The “chip in” amount we’re suggesting is $500 for the three month session. If this amount is prohibitive to your participation, then arrange with us an amount that is possible for you.

How do I apply?

The application process consists of a form to be filled out, as well as a telephone or Skype conversation to be had with one of the teachers of School for Designing a Society. There is a selection process, as we want the collaborating ensemble to number no more than 18 people. We are sending this announcement out across the globe, looking for ardent participants. Click here for the application form.

Who are the guest presenters/teachers/artists/activists?

  • Mark Enslin, composer and writer
  • Susan Parenti, composer and playwright
  • additional teachers from School for Designing a Society

Film Emphasis In the fall of 2013, the School for Designing a Society began to put more emphasis on the medium of video, with forays into the creation of Public Service Announcements as part of the larger SDAS collaboration project. We will continue with this emphasis in 2014. Under what circumstances will a composition of sound, text and moving image provoke curiosity, action, reflection, and change of mind?

Collaboration with writer & urban planner, Faranak Miraftab This Spring 2014 SDaS participants have been invited to work with writer and urban planner, Faranak Miraftab on theatricalizing texts from her book, Making a Home in the Heartland: Immigration and Global Labor Mobility. The book is based on interviews with Cargil employees in Beardstown illinois. The idea would be to create a touring program based on these texts/interviews. Writers, musicians, poets, dancers, activists are invited to work on this collaboration.

apply no particular educational background is required; the prerequisite is the desire to participate in designing a society.

upcoming read about our upcoming programs and workshops in the fall, spring & summer.

courses listed both alphabetically and by topic & a number of interdisciplinary programs cross boundaries between disciplines.

what happens? designing a society is a project that intersects the formats of classroom, commune, performance ensemble, activist group.