SummerWorks Photography: Pandemic Theatre in the City
Photo by Santi Ku
Fall is in the air, and the spooky season is upon us…
So let’s throw back to summer, shall we? I love fall fashions but I could hold off on the cold a bit longer, so here goes!
This August I was invited to document the 2021 SummerWorks Theatre Festival, which was returning to in-person performances, but with new social distancing and audience cap measures in place. Additionally, some of the work was interactive and outdoors, which made for interesting, paparazzi-like shooting, which to be honest I excel at, as my siblings and close friends might attest to with a groan, hehe.
This was also my first time back shooting in-person events since…January 2020? Time is weird now, so let’s say that.
SummerWorks also gave me the opportunity to put into practice a new shooting prop, a glittering crystal ball that gives this rainbow, bokeh, analogue filters look that runs all around the edge of the image (this idea sourced from the incredible BouDIY boudoir photographers education community run by Alaynna Marr).
Please enjoy some fantastic theatre artists at work (and me having a great time capturing them) at the SummerWorks festival this year!
SummerWorks festival and performance signage
Proof of Existence by Philip Nozuka
A solo multimedia performance that involves the audience in the process of setting up, then beginning the performance. Philip uses projections, music, YouTube videos and personal commentary to respond to the idea of social media engagement.
Connected as We Are by Laura Nanni and Sorrel Muggridge
An interactive, site specific installation in the form of a walking tour taking place simultaneously in Toronto with Laura, and in Norwich, UK with Sorrel. The idea of distance, journeys, and modes of connection are explored as each group communicates by phone from across the ocean, leaving each other cryptic directions that often lead to serendipitous discoveries.
The Pop-Up Experience - Children of the Bear by Todd Houseman and Outside the March
Indigenous history, colonial legacies, and family traumas are explored obliquely through this interactive performance by Todd Houseman and director Mitchell Cushman, which is framed like a role-playing video game (RPG) akin to Dungeons and Dragons, with Houseman serving as the game’s DM and audience guide.
The Pop-Up Experience - Portal by DJ Me Time / The R.A.V.E. Institute and Outside the March
A neon-dream, psychedelic dance installation by DJ Me Time, new media artist Karl Skene, and a host of collaborators, “Portal“ is a one-on-one audience experience that takes the form of “…an immersive systems update for your human software“. It also features a brilliant piece of neon word art by the Nigerian-Canadian artist Oluseye.
Softness is a Blessing by Dainty Smith and Ravyn Wngz
A sumptuous exploration through music and dance of Black femininity, in all of its multiple facets. This piece is a dialogue through movement and expression between Dainty and Ravyn, which in a short time manages to encompass the breadth of emotions underlying what it means to be soft, Black and femme in a world that demands hardness and stoicism.
