in development with Playwrights Theatre Centre (2017-2021)
In "Szepty/Whispers", an artist probes their immigrant mother's silence around mental health, seeking words for their own experiences. As they sift through traces of the past, they grapple with the afterlife of violence, the untranslatability of culture, and the politics of memory. Through a fractured accumulation of personal narrative, multimedia design, integrated captions, and embedded audio description, the performance searches for disability kinship across generational fault-lines.
"Szepty/Whispers" also has a parallel digital experience, which includes an immersive website and a geolocation-based app. The website and app bring together contributions from various artists, in the form of text, audio, and ASL videos. Audiences encounter full or partial versions of each contribution, depending on the path they take through the experience. A fragmented dialogue emerges, which complicates the language of mental health by juxtaposing multiple perspectives. Ultimately, audiences can join the conversation by leaving a response.
In-Person Performance Credits:
Writer/Performer: Veronique West Director: Jivesh Parasram Inclusive Designer: JD Derbyshire Scenography Designer: Cindy Mochizuki Sound Designer: David Mesiha New Media/Projection Design Team: Chimerik似不像 Collective New Media/Projection Designer: Caroline MacCaull New Media/Projection Design Advisor & Mentor: Sammy Chien Lighting Designer: Keagan Elrick Dramaturg: Kathleen Flaherty Production Coordinator (2021 Workshop): Heather Barr Deaf Interpreter (2021 Workshop): Ladan Sahraei ASL Interpreters (2021 Workshop): Sara-Lee Salterio & Melanie Valencia Carpentry: Minoru Yamamoto Consultants: Amy Amantea, Siobhan Barker, June Fukumura, Rei Ga-wun Leung, and Marifer Douglas
Parallel Digital Experience Credits:
Conceptualized and curated by: Veronique West Contributors: mia amir, Kagan Goh, Maya Jones, Constantin Lozitsky, Jivesh Parasram, Kendra Place, & Manuel Axel Strain Inclusive Designer: JD Derbyshire Sound designer: David Mesiha Dramaturg: Kathleen Flaherty Digital Platform Realization by: Cultch Digital Storytelling Team Deaf Interpreter: Ladan Sahraei Production Coordinators: Brian Postalian & Heather Barr Consultants: Amy Amantea, June Fukumra, MariFer Douglas, & Simran Gill
Developed at PTC as part of the Associates Program