Survival can be dicey. Maximize your chances with Revelations ConsultingTM.
Burnaby B.C.—Presented by the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, Revelations is an Upintheair Theatre production in association with Rumble Theatre, that runs from September 16 to 26, 2021. Revelations is part interactive game, part live performance that is played first at home via walkie talkie and culminates with a dance party at the end of the world. Created by Toronto-based artists—Anahita Dehbonehie, Griffin McInnes, and Aidan Morishita-Miki—Revelations is an inventive hybrid production that will investigate personal and collective responses in the face of disaster.
Experimental in performance form with a distinct DIY aesthetic, Revelations draws inspiration from tabletop board games, escape rooms, game shows, puzzles, role-playing and theatre. In a summer that has seen unprecedented heat waves and wildfires in B.C., mired by the backdrop of a lingering pandemic, it aims to question the origins of ideas around catastrophe. The presentation explores how prepared we are to deal with the fallout from a disaster scenario, and confronts themes around climate change and inequality.
Participants can experience Revelations solo, or work as a household with a group of up to six people. A RevelationsTM Consultant will hand-deliver a survival kit and a walkie-talkie to a home address in a prescribed catchment area. The gameplay elements will start there and include further instructions. Then, the interactive instalment is held at an outdoor location on the grounds of Deer Lake Park, and concludes with a dance party.
Revelations was developed as part of a residency at Kingston’s Kick and Push Festival in August 2020, with the support of the Ontario Arts Council. Selected as the Updrafts Collaborative Commission by Upintheair Theatre this spring, the creative team has collaborated remotely with Updrafts’ Dramaturg David Geary, in preparation for this production of Revelations.
Upintheair Theatre’s production team commissioned the work as it directly addressed concerns experienced during the height of Covid-19 lockdowns. Co-producer Daniel Martin said, “We were intrigued by the creators' research-driven process that included interviewing disaster preparedness enthusiasts, and the way the concept is both relatable and reflective of our experiences in the past year.”
The creative team includes Anahita Dehbonehie, Griffin McInnes and Aidan Morishita-Miki, Co-creators and Directors; David Geary, Dramaturg; Edwardine Van Wyk, Anjela Magpantay and Mack Gordon, RevelationsTM Consultants for Apocalypse Consultation; Daniel Martin, David Mott and Pippa Mackie, Producers; Taylor Janzen, Technical Director; and Kayleigh Sandomirsky, Stage Manager.
TICKET INFORMATION
$25 / Household (maximum of 6 people / household)
Call Shadbolt Centre of the Arts Box office to book: 604.205.3000
Tuesday-Friday: 12-5pm and Saturday: 12-4pm
Households must reside in East Vancouver, New Westminster or Burnaby
Family-friendly show for ages 10+ with accompanying adult
Rain or shine
More information: https://www.upintheairtheatre.com/revelations
Revelations follows the guidance of Public Health Orders and the safety guidelines established by the B.C. government. The health and safety of all participants, staff, and artists is Upintheair Theatre’s top concern.
CONTACT
Publicist, Zoe Quinn: publicist@upintheairtheatre.com, 778.772.6846
High Resolution photography: www.upintheairtheatre.com/media-resources-1
SUPPORTED BY
Canada Council for the Arts | Ontario Arts Council | The Hamber Foundation | British Columbia Arts Council | Rumble Theatre | City of Vancouver | City of Burnaby | Shadbolt Centre for the Arts | Stir
ABOUT UPINTHEAIR THEATRE
Under the leadership of Daniel Martin and David Mott, Upintheair Theatre has been producing original and provocative theatre in Vancouver since 2000. Recent online presentations include The Array: First Contact and eVolver Festival (2020) and rEvolver Festival (2021). Past productions include The Array: The Shape of The Galaxy (2019), A Brief History of Human Extinction (2018), The City and The City (2017) co-produced with The Only Animal at PuSh Festival, The North Plan (2016) which won three Jessie Awards in the Small Theatre category, and Inside The Seed (2013) which won Jessie Awards for Outstanding Direction (Small Theatre) and Best New Script. Each spring, since 2013, the company presents rEvolver Festival showcasing contemporary performance work by emerging and early mid-career artists.
Upintheair Theatre acknowledges that the company works and performs on the unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Website: www.upintheairtheatre.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/UpintheairTheatre
Instagram: www.instagram.com/upintheair_theatre
YouTube: www.youtube.com/UpintheairTheatre
Twitter: www.twitter.com/UITATheatre
ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM
Anahita Dehbonehie is an Iranian performance designer and installation artist. Currently based in Toronto, her practice is founded on the principle that truths are communicated most powerfully through evocative sensory experiences. She is drawn specifically to work that questions form and content while creating space for contemporary conversations. Her work has been featured across Canada and internationally, including at the Prague Quadrennial, The Vilnius Capital of Culture, and the Moscow Museum of Modern Art.
Griffin McInnes is a director, playwright and producer in Tkaronto. He is the creative producer at Outside the March Theatre and one of the co-creators of The Ministry of Mundane Mysteries, a phone-based, pandemic-responsive production performed thousands of times in 200+ cities worldwide. His recent Zoom-based collaboration with playwright Karen Hines and The University of Windsor, The River of Forgetfulness, was hailed by The Toronto Star as “ingenious.” Formerly Halifax-based, Griffin holds a graduate degree from France’s SciencesPo where he collaborated with interdisciplinary artists from around the world on research-creation projects.
Aidan Morishita-Miki (he/him) is a stage manager and arts administrator living in Tkaronto, where he is currently the manager of communications and outreach for Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. Aidan completed a Masters of Education in Adult Education and Community Development at the University of Toronto, and his interests in community building and queer re-imaginings thread through his work. Previous work as stage manager included: All for One for All (xLq), Access Me (Boys in Chairs Collective), Specimen (Specimen Collective), Drift Seeds (Red Dress Productions), The Tale of a Town (FIXT POINT), and To Live in the Age of Melting (Outspoken Productions).