Jasmine Hearn's MEMORY FLEET: BELOVED LET'S CROSS to be Presented at New York Live Arts
Jasmine Hearn's episodic archive project is co-presented with Chocolate Factory Theater at West 19th Street.
New York Live Arts' will present the World Premiere of Jasmine Hearn's Memory Fleet: Beloved Let's Cross; the latest chapter in a continually expanding, episodic, migrating performance and archive project that builds an alternative archive for the preservation of shared memories and stories that center the lived experience of the Black people who have mothered and mentored the artistic trajectory of lead artist Jasmine Hearn. Co-Presented with Chocolate Factory Theater, Memory Fleet: Beloved, Let's Cross will be presented in the New York Live Arts Theater Thursday, June 11th at 7:30pm through Saturday, June 13th at 7:30pm. A Stay Late Conversation will follow the performance on Friday, June 12th. Tickets start at $30 with limited Pay-What-You-Wish options, and can be purchased now.
Memory Fleet: Beloved, Let's Cross encompasses a series of performances, a shared embodied practice, an evolving installation of archival materials, an expanding digital archive, and a body of original sound, text, and recipes — all celebrating the stories, dances, and gestures passed on through intergenerational lineages. Hearn's Memory Fleet project began in 2014 with the creation of the interdisciplinary dance theater piece, Memory Keep(H)er with their grandmother. This performance was later made into a short film series — both iterations act as an alternative archive that listens and preserves the grandmother's story of growing up in rural Texas in the 1940's. Over a decade, the duet has expanded into the interdisciplinary project, which premiered in Houston, TX April 2024 with a site-specific installation and ensemble production – Memory Fleet: A Return to Matr was co-presented by DiverseWorks and Houston MET Dance.
As the umbrella project moves across the country, each new city brings an entirely new iteration, a new show. Hearn expands their research and listening practices to include a spectrum of places and people who have shaped their understanding of color, direction, gesture, and rhythm. Memory Fleet: Beloved Let's Cross features additional choreographic collaboration from Byronné J, Hearn, Melanie George, Harrison Guy, Acquenette LeBlanc, Bebe Miller, Kendra Portier, and jhon r. stronks. Featuring an original sound score by Hearn and Ashley Teamer, the ensemble presentation will feature performances from Hearn, Nora Alami, Maria Bauman, Dominica Greene, Melanie George, Jenna Hearn, Pamela Pietro, Angie Pittman, Kendra Portier, Jo Stewart, jhon r. stronks, Charmaine Warren, and Tara Aisha Willis, with archival video design by Myssi Robinson.
Onsite full evening tickets start at a standard price of $30. Live Arts is continuing their community ticket pricing, allowing the public to choose a price that fits any budget. Limited “Pay-What-You-Wish” tickets are available for all onsite events. To support this, Live Arts offers a “What-It-Really-Costs” ticket at $250, reflecting the true cost of a performance in NYC. Live Core Artist Members, Students and Seniors receive 20% off standard prices.
Videos