FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
AT WATER'S EDGE / AL FILO DEL AGUA A New Bilingual Dance-Theatre Performance Premieres in St. Pete
AT WATER'S EDGE / AL FILO DEL AGUA asks: What are the borders that divide you? What are the frontiers you approach? What are the edges you evade? Where are the places we find hope—in our bodies, words, songs, images.
ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Join Art2Action at the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg (MFA) for the premiere of At Water’s Edge/Al filo del agua, an open-air, theatre and dance performance with live music. Created by nationally acclaimed choreographer Celeste Miller and USF Theatre professor Dora Arreola, At Water’s Edge is a binational collaboration featuring artists from Mexico—dancer Miroslava Wilson and vocalist Siki Carpio—and the United States, including violinist/composer Chip Epsten. This project was co-commissioned by Art2Action, Grinnell College, and the National Performance Network (NPN). Performances will happen in the MFA St. Pete Sculpture Garden at 7pm on June 23, and 3pm on June 26, 2022, for approximately one hour, followed by a discussion with the artists. Tickets are free with museum admission.
At Water’s Edge was developed through a multi-site process, and includes video projections from the artists’ various locations: Florida, Iowa, and Baja California. Created by three women from different generations and different geographic locations—one in the United States, the other in Mexico, and the third at the edge of the two—stories, legends, and acts of resistance intertwine as their lives intersect. It is about the shifting of borders/edges/filos—the natural and political forces that shape them, and the women who resist.
“It is our hope that the performance will serve as a site for audiences to consider ‘staying in the trouble’ in troubling times, cultivating our potential to be response-able, in times of ease as well as in times of turmoil,” says lead artist, Celeste Miller.
Celebrating the artists and themes in the MFA’s photography exhibition Women’s Work: A Survey of Female Photographers, At Water’s Edge serves as a touchstone to artists and works of art in the exhibition, such as:
• Barbara Morgan’s depiction of the dancer Martha Graham • Fay Godwin, environmental activist • Graciela Iturbide, whose works create visual portraits of communities in transition along the Mexican/American border • Mariana Yampolsky, who explored the cultural occupation experienced by Indigenous communities
Prior to the premiere, collaborating artists Celeste Miller, Dora Arreola, and Miroslava Wilson will share a preview of the work at the Veteran Community Open Mic, presented by Art2Action, Paint22, and Straz Salutes program on June 12, 6:30-9pm, FREE at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts Riverwalk Tent.
AT A GLANCE
WHAT: At Water’s Edge/Al filo del agua
WHO: Directed by Celeste Miller & Dora Arreola Featuring Celeste Miller, Dora Arreola, Miroslava Wilson Music by Siki Carpio and Chip Epsten
Presented by Art2Action in partnership with the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) St. Petersburg
WHERE: In the Sculpture Garden @ Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg (MFA)
255 Beach Dr NE, St. Petersburg, FL 33701
WHEN: Thursday, June 23, 2022: 7 pm EDT
Sunday, June 26, 2022: 3 pm EDT
PRICES: FREE with museum admission. Enjoy special pricing on Thursdays: Admission is only $10 after 5 pm.
$20 on Sundays.
Available for purchase at the door or at the ticketing links below:
Thursday, June 23, 2022: 7 pm EDT: https://mfastpete.org/event/at-waters-edge/
Sunday, June 26, 2022: 3 pm EDT: https://mfastpete.org/event/at-waters-edge-1/
MEDIA ASSETS: Go directly to this page to view photos and video trailer: https://www.art2action.org/new-works/at-waters-edge
Additional media assets are available upon request.
INTERVIEWS: Interviews with the artistic team are available. Email gabi@art2action.org to arrange.
AT WATER'S EDGE / AL FILO DEL AGUA is a National Performance Network (NPN) Creation & Development Fund Project co-commissioned by Art2Action, in partnership with Grinnell College, and NPN. The Creation & Development Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency). For more information, visit www.npnweb.org. Additional support comes from the NPN Artist Engagement Fund, and the Ford Foundation.
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