Residency Toronto Performance Art Collective 2019 KinesTHESESSeptember 1st September 15th
waters/edge Saturday, September 7 2 pm Sunnyside Park, 1755 Lake Shore Blvd. W. Sunday, September 8 2 pm Toronto Islands, location TBA Saturday, September 14 8 pm Toronto Beaches Boardwalk, location TBA
waters/edge prelude sessions (advance booking required; email here for inquiries) Dates and locations TBA
moon oh moon oh tide forth glow the incredible light forth go stop spilling bulls blood in the spanish love streams between the wave and the shore lies the pull of the moon waters/edge invites participants to engage in group walks that result in making ensemble sound / bell songs, near various sites where the water’s edge meets the land. A sounding exploration and sonar reading, waters/edge invites an aural reflection of both the body’s own fluid systems and bodies of water. This work can be understood as a celebration both of being and of the water within and around us. Opening a space for awareness between flow and structure, between softness and hardness, waters/edge continues from Bell Works--a body of work started in 2007 with a solo performance that became a trio, then an octet, then a group of 13. Bell Workstook place in Vancouver, Paris, Spain, Ottawa, Toronto, and Montreal, as well as various urban and rural sites in Saskatchewan. All are welcome to come and listen/observe, but for those wishing to participate as bell ringers, Robin will offer several prelude rehearsal sessions. Through a series of somatic based workshops with Robin Poitras, guest artists, and somatic practitioners, participants/public will be introduced to a walking, sitting, and bell ringing journey near the water’s edge. Those attending one or more of the prelude sessions are expected to commit to participating in at least one of the scheduled walks. Robin is grateful to artists, friends, and colleagues Paige Culley, Dae Courtney, Bill Coleman, and Ann Tutt, who will be sharing their unique practices in rehearsals leading toward the walks for waters/edge.
Robin Poitras is one of Saskatchewan’s most prolific dance and performance creators. Creating dance, performance and installation works, she has been actively engaged in contemporary dance practice since the early 1980s. For many years Robin has traversed the formal worlds of dance and performance art. She co-founded New Dance Horizons in 1986, with Dianne Fraser where she continues to act as Artistic Director. With an interest in research into diverse fields of artistic and somatic practice, she has developed a unique interdisciplinary approach. Robin’s works have been presented across Canada, in Spain, France, Germany, Mongolia and Mexico. She is a recipient of the 2016 Lieutenant Governor’s Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2006 Mayor’s Awards for Business & The Arts’ Lifetime Achievement Award, and the 2004 Women of Distinction Award for the Arts. In 2008, she was one of 7a*11d’s Éminences grises.
This residency is produced with the support of New Dance Horizons / Rouge-gorge, a project-based creation production company led by Co -Artistic Directors Robin Poitras and renowned visual artist Edward Poitras. Launched in 2009, Rouge-gorge is a foundation for research, creation, production, and touring. The company produces contemporary dance and performance works by Robin Poitras, Edward Poitras, and guest artists. Traversing between the fields of dance and performance art, Robin’s work brings elements of visual and performance art into an inseparable arena. Intense collaboration with artists in dance, theatre, visual, music, and performance art is a mark of Robin’s creative practice.