Returning to Capital Fringe with Ten Principles

Ten Principles...

And not just any ten principles, but the Ten Principles of Burning Man.

That's what this year's Capital Fringe show is going to be about. And I use show in the LOOSEST of terms. The production will be ten DC area burners, each telling an autobiographical story about their experience with one of the principles. But why Burning Man? Why the Ten Principles?

Well, for those that have followed AWoL Productions' work over the years might have noticed, since the first show in 2010, each production has been somewhat autobiographical. The first year, the show was about the rave scene, a kind of theatrical PSA, paying homage to the community that helped me discover my passion for dance, to the point where I pursued it professionally. The second year, the play was about how Filipino communities and families deal with mental illness, which helped me deal with a personal family tragedy. And the third year, the production was based on my thesis in grad school, about how working performers define arts advocacy and community.

So after taking a break from productng last summer, I'm returning to the performing arts festival with a storytelling piece about Burning Man. Because last August, I went to the Playa for the first time.

That's me in front of the Man...WAY in front of the Man, from 2013's theme, Cargo Cult. And if you look real carefully, you can see the UFO with the Man on top, right above my head. And when I got back to DC, I had a lot of friends ask me what it was like, seeing if my experience matched what they'd heard or seen. And whatever experiences I shared, I would inevitably bring it back to the Ten Principles.

The trouble is, as much as people who haven't been HAVE heard about Burning Man, the Ten Principles was usually not a part of the picture. And so grew the idea and inspiration for focusing this production on just that. What's great is that this is truly going to be a production by the community, for the community.

There will be a window of time where submissions will be accepted from everyone who'd like to pitch their story to tell. Then, with the assistance of a group of burners who've taken on leadership roles in the DC area burner community, we'll select the final ten stories. And these will be ones that aren't just particularly compelling in and of themselves, but that (when combined with the other nine) will contribute to and fit in the arc of the larger piece.

So with that, I leave you with one of my favorite photos from my first time to Burning Man. Me, inside the massive UFO, looking straight up at the Man for the first time.

And this summer, I look forward to helping bring others' experiences from the Playa to Capital Fringe, to give a similar peek into the community of Burning Man,

JR aka Nexus

P.S. The Man burns in 209 days!! Ten Principles tells in 158 days!!

A is for Artist backer: Christin Green

A is for Artist
This production is presented
as part of the 2012 Capital Fringe Festival
a program of the Washington, DC non-profit
Capital Fringe

Hey there,

Here is today's backer profile for another supporter of A is for Artist, presented as part of this year's Capital Fringe Festival.

I was fortunate to meet Christin in a recent production of The Bacchae, with WSC Avant Bard. She made what was already a great experience a phenomenal one with her personality and artistry.

So, without further ado, here's Christin.

Q: What 3 words would describe what you value about the arts?
A: Experience, Reflection, Limitless

Q: What is one of the first arts experiences you remember?

A: Playing upside-down laundry baskets with my mom's drum sticks.

Q: What is one of your favorite recent arts experiences?
A: Playing percussion for a Washington, DC theater company.

Q: Are you an artist?
A: Yes

Q: Why do you create art?
A: It's like soul fuel. Without it, I feel empty and unmotivated to do much else.

Q: How did you find out about this project?
A: A friend.

Q: Why did you support this project?
A: The arts deserve support.

Thank you Christin!! And if you'd like to suppor this show, come check it out. We've got four shows over the next week. Again, you can find out more information and get tickets at our page on Capital Fringe's site, A is for Artist.

Hope to see you there,

JR

Vision Director

AWoL Productions

A is for Artist Backer: Philip Fletcher

A is for Artist
This production is presented
as part of the 2012 Capital Fringe Festival
a program of the Washington, DC non-profit
Capital Fringe

Hey there,

Here's another backer profile, of one of the wonderful people that supported A is for Artist on Kickstarter, presented as part of this year's Capital Fringe Festival. Philip Fletcher is someone I was fortunate to know working in DC's theatre scene, primarily through work at Synetic Theater.

And here he is :-)

JR: What 3 words would describe what you value about the arts?
Philip: EMOTION, the power to connect to the audience. CREATIVITY, seeing something that is new and exciting. VARIETY, there are so many types and genres of art. No matter who you are or what you do, there will always be something that appeals to you. 

JR: What is one of the first arts experiences you remember?

Philip: I always, whenever possible, went for the more visually artoptions in class projects over written assignments. Projects like making dioramas, or drawing pictures, etc.

JR: What is one of your favorite recent arts experiences?

Philip: I was just in Synetic’s production of “Home of the Soldier” and right across the street was Artomatic. It was awesome to be surrounded by so much art and artistic people for several weeks.

JR: Are you an artist?

Philip: Yes. I am a Founding Company Member of Synetic Theatre and have dabbled in photography, film, and dance.

JR: If yes: why do you create your art?

Philip: Speaking honestly it is mostly selfish reasons. I crave the emotional connection to an audience, the rush of adrenalin just before going on stage, and the thrill of live theatre – of what will happen tonight, you really have to think on your feet sometimes.

JR: If maybe/kinda/sorta: how is art a part of your life?

Philip: I am surrounded constantly by so many talented and gifted people associated with the theatre. Many actors are multitalented either they are dancers, singers, visual artist, writers, etc. Then there is, for lack of a better word, the artistic staff, the set, costume, and prop designers and builders, lighting designers, photographers, videographers, choreographers, directors, writers, etc. Even the stage managers, productions managers, and administrative staff all seem to also have some artistic talent where they excel. 

JR: How did you find out about this project?

Philip: E-Blast

JR: Why did you support this project?

Philip: Because ultimately I like to help.

Thanks again, Philip!! And if you'd like to catch him, just keep an eye out for Synetic Theater's productions throughout the year.

JR

Vision Director

AWoL Productions

A is for Artist Backer: Peter DiMuro

A is for Artist
This production is presented
as part of the 2012 Capital Fringe Festival
a program of the Washington, DC non-profit
Capital Fringe

Hey there,

Here's our third backer profile for A is for Artist, presented as part of this year's Capital Fringe Festival. Meet Peter DiMuro.

Q: What 3 words would describe what you value about the arts?
A: art sustains life

Q: What is one of the first arts experiences you remember?
A: creating a mural of snowy mountains on a blackboard as  a backdrop to our 3rd grade singing Christmas carols

Q: What is one of your favorite recent arts experiences?
A: in process: creating a forum for multiple genre choreographers to create new and fused works to the Rachmaninoff Preludes

Q: Are you an artist?
A: Yes

Q: Why do you create art?
A: I've tried not to, and life sucks when I don't

Q: How did you find out about this project?
A: through JR Russ- a kindred soul

Q: Why did you support this project?
A: I believe in the need to translated creative processes to a wider public is necessary for better understanding, and therefore valuing of all arts

Thanks, Peter!!

And if you'd like to keep up with his work you have a couple of options! publicdisplaysofmotion.org will be up and running soon. Public Displays of Motion is the umbrella for the creative collaborations and arts advancement work of Peter DiMuro and others. Performances in DC, Philadelphia, Boston and beyond this coming 2012/2013 season.

Until next time,

JR

Vision Director

AWoL Productions

A is for Artist backer: Sean Flaim

A is for Artist
This production is presented
as part of the 2012 Capital Fringe Festival
a program of the Washington, DC non-profit
Capital Fringe

Hey there,

Here's another backer profile for someone who supported A is for Artist, presented as part of this year's Capital Fringe Festival, Sean Flaim.

Q: What 3 words would describe what you value about the arts?
A: beauty, community, emotion

Q: What is one of the first arts experiences you remember?
A: Acting in a play in elementary school

Q: What is one of your favorite recent arts experiences?
A: Seeing a series of movie stills at the headquarters of the MPAA.

Q: Are you an artist?
A: Maybe/Kinda/Sorta

Q: How is art a part of your life?

A: My interest in intellectual property law and copyright stems in part from my lifelong connection to the arts.  Whether music, film, visual or performing arts, I am fascinated by the legal constructs we've created to encourage the creation of art and support the livelihood of artists.

Q: How did you find out about this project?
A: Facebook

Q: Why did you support this project?
A: I liked the particular subject matter.

So thank you, Sean Flaim!! And if you'd like to connect with him, you can do so at his LinkedIn profile.

More profiles to come.

JR
Vision Director
AWoL Productions

A is for Artist Backer: Omar Ghadry

A is for Artist
This production is presented
as part of the 2012 Capital Fringe Festival
a program of the Washington, DC non-profit
Capital Fringe

Hey there,

Here is a quick profile of one of our backers for "A is for Artist", presented as part of this year's Capital Fringe Festival, Omar Ghadry.

Q: What 3 words would describe what you value about the arts?
A: Creativity, communication, fun

Q: What is one of the first arts experiences you remember?
A: Painting my backyard

Q: What is one of your favorite recent arts experiences?
A: Drafting a logo with my girlfriend.

Q: Are you an artist?
A: No

Q: Why do you see art?
A: New experiences/perspectives

Q: How did you find out about this project?
A: My friend JR!

Q: Why did you support this project?
A: He's my friend and I trust he puts his effort into worthwhile projects.

So thank you, Omar!!

And keep an eye out for more backer profiles over the next couple of weeks,

JR
Vision Director
AWoL Productions

"Asian American Teenage Girls Have Highest Rates of Depression"

This is one of the 8 highlighted items from NAMI's main page. The brief synopsis of key issues is based on a report that was just released this past February, based on a "listening session" held in LA in November of 2010.

I bring this up to partly contextualize feedback received from a reading we did of the play just this past week, with Artists' Bloc, another local organization I'm involved with as Membership Director.

One of the questions was if audience members had any new thoughts or revelations with regard to mental illness. Most said no, one even said that they didn't realize that the piece addressed it.

Which is all well and good, actually. Part of the dilema with this piece is the dichotomy of mental health in a sense being even more covered and talked about, at least topically.  Yet, the disconnect can be a NIMBY mentality, that we (as individuals) don't realize it can affect us until it does.

So this is good moving forward in the context of the piece because in one way, it forces us to not get so lost in the story, that we also forget to inform.  In another, it addresses the challenge of a certain fatigue we all seem to experience whenever a topic or issue seems to be saturated.

Just because we might be tired of hearing about it, doesn't make it any less important to be aware of, does not mean that people who have never had to deal with it before aren't dealing with it for the first time. I'm sure you can probably think of a host of other topics this might relate to.

I recently heard about a young Filipina who recently committed suicide in the DC Metropolitan area.  The context of this news was a friend reinforcing the urgency of the piece this summer, "Pinoy: A 'merican Tale".

In the end, I hope this piece is just the beginning continuation of a conversation that will take all of us, whatever community you're a part of, and ask us to continue to have an open mind and an open heart, to be honest with ourselves and each other.

Particularly in times such as these, yes, there are some things we might not be able to do anything about but wait.  But with each other, with those who are close to us in life, there is better time than now to check in, to say hi, and to reassure each other that whether we are friends or family, we are there for each other, to believe in and love one another.

- JR Russ, Vision Director, A Way of Life Productions