What if culture followed the same patterns as nature?What if "Roots" were more than a metaphor-- and actually describe the process by which culture holds fast to certain things, uproots itself from others, experiments and adopts change?
A few weeks ago, I went to the same cabin where "The Survival Pages" was first born...
Early February, midpoint between winter solstice and spring equinox, is a natural time to begin incubating new ideas... germinating seeds that I'll transplant later into my garden of current projects. And so, I found the first stirrings of a sequel performance: "The Culture Pages."
In my original proposal for the Naked Stages Program, my piece was to be titled "Bridges" (this was nearly a year before the 35W bridge collapse). What I intended to explore was twofold: connections between humans and nature, and connections between cultures & generations. I soon realized that the original idea was too broad-- so I narrowed it down to focus on my own, personal connection to nature. This is what became "The Survival Pages."
With "The Culture Pages" (if that's the name I'll actually use), I'd like to take up the second half of what "Bridges" had meant to explore: A look at culture, in a broad sense-- what we once knew about how to survive, and how that information has shifted so dramatically in recent generations. If the culture I now belong to is a tree, just what is it that I'm rooted to? Am I some pampered breed of hydroponic tomato, grown without real dirt, too delicate to survive a harsh Minnesota winter? How many of my great-grandparents' skills -- making a living from the land-- have been lost, and why?
So, more on this soon...
I have to go get ready for the next circus show at Heart of the Beast... (see "Dirt & Water", below, for more info on that)
I'm definitely looking for a new venue/grant money to develop and produce "The Culture Pages"-- so if you have any leads for me, do send me a comment!
PS. I'm in the Minnesota Fringe Festival! So "The Survival Pages" will be coming again this summer, dates and venue To Be Announced! (Late July/Early August).
