"Dis/Location (Fort Tryon)"

In recent months the media has brought our attention to the terrible plight of many immigrants trying to reach new homes. For the past three years Drastic Action Company members have been steeped in immigrant stories as we develop "Dis/Location (Fort Tryon)," a multi-part project exploring the immigrant experience. The piece is rooted in Artistic Director, Aviva Geismar's, experience as the child of a Holocaust refugee and in interviews with New Yorkers from all over the world. 
 

The company is developing a site-specific piece for Fort Tryon Park in Manhattan’s Washington Heights neighborhood. The piece explores the themes that emerged in the interviews: the trauma of leaving home, feeling unmoored and fragile, the awkwardness of trying to fit into a new culture, and the rituals we use to create a sense of home. Geismar chose the park because it has served as a refuge for generations of immigrants who have settled in Washington Heights.
 

This spring, Drastic Action company members will offer free creative dance classes to two groups of middle school children at City College Academy of the Arts. This school, across the street from the park, has a strong arts curriculum and a dance studio but currently no dance program. During the creative dance classes, the students, who mostly come from immigrant families, will develop their own dances about the experience of immigrating. The project will culminate with a series of free performances in the park June 16 -18, including the kids performing their original dances and Drastic Action company members performing the site- specific piece. The project is sponsored by the Fort Tryon Park Trust and supported by Jody and John Arnhold, The PSC-CUNY Research Foundation as well as numerous private individuals. 

The creative dance classes will be based on Geismar's successful creative dance curriculum which the company implemented during five years of teaching in Germany as part of the international cultural exchange program "Dancing to Connect." Classes will begin the week of March 14^th and run twice a week through June 15^th. Two teaching artists will lead each class of 20 students. The students will first be introduced to the basic elements of dance (space, time and energy), and then develop their own pieces exploring the immigrant experience. They will interview their family members or write about their own immigration experiences as they develop their dance works. Concurrently, the company will be in the final stages of rehearsals for the site-specific work. The project will culminate with 3 free performances in the park -- Thursday and Friday, June 16th and 17th at 7pm and Saturday, June 18th at 5 pm. These will include the students performing their original works and the Drastic Action performing the site-specific piece. On Sunday, June 19th the company will lead a collaborative collage event at the school during which students, families and other audience members will have an opportunity to respond to the performances and share their own stories by creating a shared visual collage. 

We live in a deeply segregated city where prejudice against newcomers is commonplace. The project aims to create a bridge of understanding between recent immigrants and the broader community. The project will serve the largely Dominican and economically disadvantaged community of Washington Heights. For immigrants we hope that seeing their stories reflected in performance will open the door for further exchange. For people less familiar with this journey, we hope to foster deepened understanding toward new comers in our shared city.