The Quarry Project Update
March 2018

Remember summer?
Here are Sofia and Andric on the stage in August, experimenting with sounds in the quarry. Just to give you some perspective, in the far distant right-hand corner of the photo, you can maybe see me sitting on the rock ledge, listening.
Here is a short film by Michael Fisher from that day.

February was a busy month spent nudging The Quarry Project along.
The first half was punctuated with overnight visits to Burlington for meetings with project planners. The second half was devoted to writing two major grant applications.

Writing these two grants, as arduous as they were, gave me a firmer grasp on how to speak about the Project. Heading into the spring, Kristen will be taking over the next batch of grants. Come April, Amy, Laurel and I will be in the studio for a 4 day choreographic residency, letting our thinking bodies begin to create the dances!

On March 7th, we (the community engagement team of Christine Holt, Amy LePage, Molly Kaye and myself) will have our first Community Information Gathering (CIG) at the Barre Town School for the residents of Websterville. We are interested in hearing their quarry stories which, in turn, will form the foundation for creative ideas that bubble up as we fashion the piece. We will have three more CIGs this month and then several more throughout the year to ensure a good connection to our hosts and a welcoming environment in which the project can grow and flourish.

For all my past site pieces, Leslie Anderson (costume designer and set consultant) has crafted an Audience Response book for audience members to record their experience of the performance. At our recent CIG team meeting, Christine suggested the book be a reflection of the entire scope and scale of the creative process. With that broader idea in mind, Leslie has created The Quarry Project book that will be present at all public gatherings. In it, people can record their memories of the Wells Lamson Quarry, their responses to the gatherings, and thoughts on the project’s progress. It will have its first entries on March 7th.

When next I write, it will be spring!!
Thank you for your attention and interest in The Quarry Project.