AN EXPLORER’S DESIRE – LAUNCH PROJECT OF CREATIVE CORPS
Step One: 2016 – Baltimore, MD
Around the table were people whose family or personal history found them arriving from Barbados, Belgium, Italy, Haiti, Russia, Jamaica, Poland, China to name a few of the countries represented by the strangers who gathered to share their talents, thoughts and backgrounds. We ended the year on a note of hope, high intellectual sharing and deep connectivity and for that it was an inspiring first step of the path ahead for this project. The experimentation of presenting theatre at the most intimate level – where we gather to eat – and the sacredness of the table is inspired by our Artistic Director’s Jewish background where she draws from the Passover meal and the Seder, the Hagaddah (the “order” and the “telling”). This will be the foundation for our process.
Step Two: 2017 – Baltimore, MD
At the Jewish Museum of Maryland we took the next step of this project with 40 people randomly selected who represented almost every continent on the planet. The engagement and involvement with the audience evolved as we staged an event allowing for personal reflection and encouraging communal discussion that opened the possibility of local action. Two new texts were added by Baltimore writers which covered the refugee camps and the threats of territorialism and fear. This project launched our long-term partnership with Immigration Outreach Service Center of Baltimore and finalized the script (here presented in staged reading format) for our Creative Corps membership to use in their communities.
Step Three: 2018
Baltimore, MD-Burbank, CA-Washington D.C.-Shreveport, LA
This next part of the process will bring the event to 30 locations throughout Baltimore in partnership with Immigration Outreach Service Center of Baltimore as well as to 3 Test Cities to solidify the process and clarity of the Creative Corps methodology. As we enter into this phase more will be shared here and elsewhere on the site and at our Facebook and Twitter accounts.