Arts House is presenting a series of installations, performances, spoken-word events, readings and conversations during July, which will reveal and explore the complex relationships of place and belonging.
Arts House Artistic Director Angharad Wynne-Jones said the works, which run from 19 - 30 July 2017, explore narratives around the violence of colonialism, the migration of people as refugees or those asserting new futures, and our connection to the land on which we live on.
"Twelve lead artists and their collaborators from across the globe, and around the corner, are bringing their urgent, powerful explorations of histories and possible futures to Arts House in July," said Wynne-Jones.
Artists include multi-media spoken word maestro Nástio Mosquito with his work Respectable Thief. Known for his performances, videos, music and poetry with an intense commitment to the open-ended potential of language, Mosquito comes to Arts House via MoMA (NY) and Berliner Festspiele (BER).
South African based Sethembile Msezane will present Excerpts from the Past, a powerfully eloquent love letter to those who have been disposed of their history; and Sydney's PYT | Fairfield will present TRIBUNAL, a truth- telling and fiercely ambitious verbatim performance addressing Australia's history through the parallel stories of Indigenous Australia and newly arrived refugees.
The series also includes local Melbourne-based artists include the 2017 Slamalamadingdong Champion w?ni, with his first full-feature solo show Tales of an Afronaut, and Samara Hersch and Lara Thoms with the world premiere of We All Know What's Happening; a collaborative work with seven young people in Melbourne in response to Australia's ongoing relationship with Nauru.
"Through this series of performances, discussions, readings, lively interactions anda special large Supper Club in the main hall of the North Melbourne Town Hall, audiences can expect to be taken to new worlds through ancient, new and crucial narratives," Wynne-Jones said.
Full schedule below:
19 - 22 Jul We All Know What's Happening - Samara Hersch & Lara Thoms [World Premiere]
20 - 23 Jul TRIBUNAL - PYT | Fairfield [Victorian Premiere]
23 Jul The Long Lunch - Jamie Lewis
25 Jul Supper Club: Place & Displacement - Asha Bee Abraham & Dan Koop
26 - 28 Jul Tales of an Afronaut - w?ni [World Premiere]
27 - 29 Jul Respectable Thief - Nástio Mosquito [Australian Premiere]
29 - 30 Jul Excerpts from the Past - Sethembile Msezane [Australian Premiere]
29 - 30 Jul Sonic Hieroglyphs - Stéphanie Kabanyana Kanyandekwe [World Premiere]
19 - 30 Jul The Community Reading Room - Torika Bolatagici [World Premiere]30 Jul Art & Action: Displacing Whiteness in the Arts - Tania Cañas with Sethembile Msezane & Odette Kelada
Web artshouse.com.auFacebook /artshousemelbourneTwitter @artshousemelbInstagram @artshouse_____________________________________________
Videos