The Welders Present THE EARTH, THAT IS SUFFICIENT

In the midst of international and local organizing to demand action on climate justice, Welder Lead Producing Playwright Annalisa Dias is exploring how performance can foster hope in this time of anxiety. THE EARTH, THAT IS SUFFICIENT is an iterative, transnational ensemble-driven performance project that is taking place in three phases. PHASE 2: HARVEST MUSHROOMS began in August and will continue through September.

On the afternoon of Saturday, September 14, CLIMATE FUTURES, the next "Harvest Mushroom" will emerge at the House of Sweden. The multimedia installation will culminate in a performance and celebration for participants of all ages on the House of Sweden rooftop overlooking the Potomac River. Audiences for CLIMATE FUTURES also have the opportunity to visit the photo exhibit Glacier by Ragnar Axelsson (RAX), one of Iceland's most prominent photographers, in the House of Sweden's gallery FYRAFEM.

"I'm honored by our partnership and ongoing relationship with the Embassy of Sweden as we think about the global and local implications of the melting Arctic," shared Annalisa, who along with collaborator Delesslin George-Warren traveled to the Scandinavian Arctic in spring 2018 to learn from and connect with Sami artist-activists. This early research residency was supported by the American Scandinavian Association, the Sami Center for Contemporary Art (Norway), and the TCG Global Connections Program.

CLIMATE FUTURES - Saturday, September 14, 2pm - 4pm, House of Sweden (2900 K St NW, Washington, DC 20007)

Through CLIMATE FUTURES we invite you to participate in an immersive multimedia installation + performance + celebration to engage the following questions:

How do we experience the movement of time? How do we experience hope as we move into a future where the planet's climate has been permanently altered? How do we think about the interconnected resilience of earth's waterways here at the edges of the Potomac River, and north across the Atlantic in the melting Arctic?

Created by the ensemble of the earth, that is sufficient, CLIMATE FUTURES is presented by The Welders in partnership with the Embassy of Sweden.

Free admission: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/climate-future-multimedia-installation-rooftop-performance-tickets-71508348395

Part theatre, part ritual, part epic journey, the earth, that is sufficient is a contemplative inquiry into the precarity of human relationships to extraction, consumption, and power. the earth, that is sufficient is an iterative performance project that conceptualizes theatre-making as an ecology, and asks audiences to consider the braided legacy of our past and the infinite possibilities we might stitch into a shared future. It takes place in three phases over the course of 2019, and was originally conceived by Welders Lead Producing Playwright and Director, Annalisa Dias.

This project is the final offering from Welders 2.0 before passing the organization to a new generation of playwrights.

PHASE 1: SPRING MUSHROOMS included three performance events titled "Intertidal Vessels," "Peak Bloom," and "erode/return." Each piece responded to an initial provocation about Lucy, the australopithecus (the 3.2 million year old hominid fossil often referred to as humanity's earliest ancestor), her relationship to land, place, and time, and what she might reveal about extractive relationships with the earth. If you missed them, the Spring Mushroom events are archived at www.sufficientearth.com/phase-1-spring-equinox-mushrooms

PHASE 2: HARVEST MUSHROOMS started in August with an international presentation at the Vines Art Festival and in Vancouver, BC, and will be popping across Washington DC throughout September. The Harvest Mushroom phase offers an interactive, contemplative experience that responds to PHASE 1 and seeks to explore the provocation of minerals -- geologic materials, commodities, and nutrients. Most recently at the Kennedy Center's Page to Stage Festival participants observed and responded to the Spring Mushrooms while focusing on the fears and hopes surrounding our climate's future. The Harvest Mushroom events will create opportunities for audiences and artists to reflect and build hope beyond the present moment.

Following CLIMATE FUTURES, the next Harvest Mushroom titled CO-RESPIRATE will emerge on Saturday, September 21, as an immersive sound installation that will mark the Autumnal Equinox. Through this event audiences will experience co-respiration with a single tree or plant to explore the dynamic between our bodies, plants, fossilization, and extractive industries. Location will be announced via social media and email.

PHASE 3: CENTER OF GRAVITY will take place between November 11-23 at Anacostia Playhouse. A festival of community art events, building on Phase 1 and Phase 2 and offering opportunities for audiences to connect, build, and celebrate stories of hopeful futures beyond the climate crisis.