This event is part of our public + programming
Join us for a half-day session of casual conversation about what the heck “contemporary performance” is, plus some once-in-a-lifetime hands-on experimentation with the actual Carbon Movements stage that shakes and rumbles underfoot!
You’ll learn about Connor and Ainsley’s journey together through the contemporary dance landscape before taking your socks off and literally dipping your toes into the world-shaking realm of Carbon Movements. They’ll guide you as you get used to the custom-built stage and the immersive tactile elements, and then release you to explore and develop your own little piece of contemporary choreography that you can capture and share on video!
Facilitated by Connor Yuzwenko-Martin and Ainsley Hillyard.
Workshop design by The Invisible Practice.
FOR: Deaf/hard of hearing artists with an active practice, and Deaf/hard of hearing community members who want to challenge themselves and try something new.
ACCESS: Facilitation is in American Sign Language.
Participants must request if they require the following access:
- ASL to spoken English interpretation
- ASL to LSQ interpretation
- ASL to spoken French interpretation
- DeafBlind interpreter and/or co-navigator
WHAT TO BRING:
- Personal water bottle.
- Comfortable clothes for movement work. They may get dirty but all materials used in Carbon Movements wash out in laundry.
- Video recording device (phone, camera, etc) and other recording equipment if desired. A tripod will be available in the studio.
Enjoying and understanding contemporary dance and performance is a learned skill. While many Deaf people and artists have keen senses that catch visual detail and emotional nuance, translating those observations into rich, critical, and informative discussions takes a vocabulary that is not always available to the Deaf community.
We provide this opportunity in order to share and democratize the knowledge and technical discoveries of this production, and provide starting points of inspiration for local Deaf artists to develop their own approaches to contemporary performance. Participants will also be able to more readily interpret and investigate the Carbon Movements performance, contributing to deeper engagement during talkbacks and a more memorable experience.
co-presented with
ABOUT+
Connor Yuzwenko-Martin is the founder and artistic director of The Invisible Practice, a Deaf arts collective based in amiskwacîwâskahikan. He is a producer, performer, and playwright. His first two major original productions, After Faust and CARBON MOVEMENTS, both premiered in Edmonton in 2023 after several years of development, and a third show is in development.
Connor has nurtured a lifelong passion for theatre and accessibility, beginning in grade school with simple skits and continuing into his young adulthood with his first professional engagement as a rookie improvisor at Rapidfire Theatre. To date, he has worked with organizations including Edmonton Fringe, Intrepid Theatre/Victoria Fringe, Theatre SKAM, SOUND OFF Deaf Theatre Festival, Nextfest, RISER Edmonton, Tiny Bear Jaws, Good Women Dance, Outside the March, Quickdraw Animation Society, and Sync Canada.
Connor is a certified Access Activator through Tangled Art+Disability’s training program. While he also happens to hold degrees and diplomas from both University of Alberta and MacEwan University, these institutions have demonstrated complicity and aggression in colonial and genocidal projects. He no longer claims identity with these institutions until there is sufficient systemic change toward collective liberation.