PERFORMANCE AS A MAGIC SPELL
AN INTERDISCIPLINARY SOLO DEVISING AND DIVINATORY COHORT FOR ARTISTS
In this 14-week devotional training ground for solo performers facilitated by three artistic mystics, participants will learn how to combine divinatory practice with creative technique to devise performance work as a theatrically embodied ritual.
Held in a supportive group container with a focus on process, we will learn to creatively collaborate with mystery as a method to receive & devise, completing our cohort with an interdisciplinary performance piece.
COME MEET YOUR MUSE AND CHANNEL A PIECE OF NEW WORK THROUGH:
Physical techniques built to access the body in all forms: somatically, aesthetically & spiritually.
Meditative and spiritual teachings to continually investigate the material of the present moment as art from a magical, non dual, animist lens.
Devising frameworks to create art from a non-linear approach.
Divinatory tools of inspiration & play
THE DETAILS
Thursdays from 6:30-9:00 PM PST
September 10th-December 17th
ACT ONE
SEPTEMBER 10, 17, 24
PREPARATION
Agreements, personal and group intentions, opening ritual, protection & spiritual hygiene, meeting the muse as a deity of inspiration, frameworks for devising through divination, meditation approaches, preparing the body as vessel, honing the creative lens.
ACT TWO
OCTOBER 1, 8, 15, 22, 29th and NOVEMBER 5, 12
DEVISING & DIVINATION
Weekly focus and training in: Dance & Movement, Vocalization & Expression, Acting techniques grounded in Viewpoints, Meisner, clowning, folkloric narrative, Channeled writing: narrative, dialogue, poetry & devotional song, Character building & development from archetypal divination: tarot, alter-ego, deity work, Media: film, photography & projections, Composition & Design: Aesthetic world building
Training in divinatory tools for devising such as: tarot, i ching, bibliomancy, authentic movement, automatic writing, dream work, scrying, trance, pendulum, elemental magick and more.
Every class you’ll walk away with a 1-3 minute excerpt of creation you’ll add to your personal “MUSE DECK” a collection of moments to use in your larger performance piece.
ACT THREE
NOVEMBER 19, DECEMBER 3 & 10th
SYNTHESIS
Use your MUSE DECK as an oracle for designing your show, rehearse, shape, receive feedback, 1:1 mentorship, final touches, and dress rehearsal.
PERFORMANCE ON DECEMER 12th 7:00-9:00 PM
AT THE PURPLE PALACE IN SE PORTLAND, OREGON
CREATED BY ARTISTS FOR ARTISTS, PARTICIPANTS WILL SPEND
14 WEEKS IN A COMMUNAL ALTAR
come be in connection with other artists, makers, dreamers and devisers as we engage in
multi-disciplinary experimental art exploration.
THIS SPACE IS FOR YOU IF YOU:
identify as an artist and feel a deep yearning to connect, claim and put the identity of artist at the centerpiece of your life
want to integrate your spiritual or magical practice with your artistic expression and build strong daily devotion to the muse that sustains you
are interested in performing solo work, regardless of experience or medium
are open minded about how the qi of your aliveness wants to express through you in a multi-disciplinary, experimental approach
enjoy being witnessed in group work and building community centered around art
are experiencing relative stability in your life & have the emotional resources and support systems in place to sustain you as you traverse deep and transformative work
are looking for contained creative space, deadlines, and support in your process of making new work
have desire to decolonize your artistic practice & meet a fuller version of creation beyond dualism
enjoy an experimental approach to life, art & pedagogy and are excited by a radical & intimate container that meets in a non-normative space
CO-FACILITATED BY
CANDI X
DARIUS CARASQUILLO
JULIA BRAY
Simply put, the connective thread between the three of us is grounded in our shared devotion to our spiritual growth through our artistic practices. We each come with our own unique lifetimes of professional work as artists, facilitators, producers & performers with an equally disciplined approach to divination. Candi & Julia have been creating immersive worlds & colliding in creative work for 10+ years, and Dare & Julia have been diving into divinatory portals and collaborating on theatrical stories for the last 3. With our powers combined we each bring a wide range of skills grounded in hard earned wisdom from real life art practice!
MEET CANDI X
Candi X is a performance artist, facilitator, director, and producer. They recently moved back to their home town of Portland, Oregon after spending half of their life in South & Latin America.
Their brightly queer and colorful creations, which are rooted in deep research, explore the eco-erotic relationship between the human and natural world. All of their works are equal parts embodied, intellectual, and silly – redefining the erotic by igniting the sensorial imagination. Through playful, body-based experiences, performances, films, and practices, they facilitate fun, connection, and curiosity that opens audiences up to new perspectives and possibilities for connection to themselves and the life around them.
Their philosophy explores eroticism as the desire for more aliveness, not only for oneself, but for all life – the erotic as a driving force to both imagine and action new forms of creation and collaboration. Through their diverse works, they awaken the memory of being alive in our bodies so we may listen more deeply to ourselves, those around us, and the surrounding nature which inspires us to better care for one another and co-create an abundant future and a new regenerative reality.
Candi X has taught, performed, and directed internationally in Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, the US, and all throughout Mexico.
MEET DARE CARASQUILLO
Dare (Darius Carrasquillo) (they/them) is a mixed race gen x’er who fucks with multi disciplinary art. Theatrical pedagogy stems from Devised Physical Theater, Bouffon/clown, Post-colonial theory, experimental design principles. Other frames of artmaking include illustration, comic books, collage, poetry, experimental writing, game design. Larger pedagogical frameworks stem from Nondual Animism and Daoist dream practice and adjacent practices (divination, astrology, nutrition, meditation), disability justice, neuro-decolonization/decolonial mental health, somatics & biomechanics, deep time history and study of pre-colonial cultures.
MEET JULIA BRAY
Julia Bray (she/they) is a multi-disciplinary artist, performer, astrologer, teacher, and creative producer. She is a mystic witch in ongoing conversation with planetary bodies, guides, and a multitude of energetic lineages across yoga, breathwork, and ritual, held with a critical eye toward the capitalization of self-improvement.
Her theatrical pedagogy spans from shakespeare to clowning, character work, ritual structure as compositional tool, evolutionary astrology, animist and devotional practices, divination, writing, breath work, play and song. Her professional credits include roles off-broadway & in film and television, most recently appearing in “Pig”, as the actual thief who steals Nicholas Cage’s Pig. A trained classical ballerina and professional actress for the last 15+ years she brings a deep understanding of traditional narrative arc and theatrical structures to her work. Trained at NYU Tisch with a BFA in Musical Theater, Julia is a member of two actors unions.
In addition to her is a queer polyamorous mom, flower-obsessed queen, an actual tree hugger, an ADHD magician alchemizing life through her art practice. Aquarius sun, Libra moon, Leo rising vibes with a perpetually longing Venus conjunct North Node in Pisces (aka cosmically designed to use art as a magical tool).
LOCATION: THE PURPLE PALACE
The Purple Palace is a whimsical, magical portal that Candi calls home! Located conveniently in SE Portland near Division, this home has been a profound hub of creativity for artists, healers and magicians of all kinds for many years. The home has been a site for literal new birth (a midwife used to live there and facilitate home births in the space!), incredible growth (a place for a multi-generational creative weed candy business!) and profound creative experiments (immersive theatrical installations & performances!)
We could’ve easily chosen to hold this container within a neutral studio space. Our choice to gather here is intentional, supporting the cohort in cultivating an animist relationship with site, land and aesthetics. With a choice of multiple rooms and levels to work within, we feel excited to listen deeply to the home as an entity of creation and honor it’s clear desires to serve as an artistic site.
We also feel that gathering in someone’s intimate space heightens presence and a cultivation of a ritualistic approach: shoes off at the door, a bell to ring upon entry, props and colors and sights and sounds not found in a black box, and access to the outdoors. Our larger vision is for the cohort to cast a spell that supports each and every one of us in the quest to approach our daily life from the viewpoint of the muse in its many forms. We gather in a non-normative space to try to bridge the gap between the “at home” self, and the “professional artist” self. Using the home as a site of continual divination & inspiration as well as a hearth to nourish and connect with community feels deeply exciting and aligned with our praxis and values.
SLIDING SCALE ACCESS PRICING:
We are committed to offering a wide range of access to this experience.
Please honestly assess your ability to contribute to this space keeping in mind those who may need to utilize lower scale options.
REGULAR PRICE: $1333
this is the pricing that reflects our time, energy, training, expertise & space! If you are currently experiencing financial stability, able to pay rent, buy groceries, vacation and explore the world with ease, please consider paying at this tier!
MIDDLE ACCESS: $888
this is flexible pricing to allow for folks who are feeling financially at ease but need to conserve some resources at the moment.
ACCESS TIER: $555
while we recognize this is still a considerable amount of money for many people, this is our lowest access tier for folks who are more financially in need.
We have a limited number of scholarship positions available for BIPOC community members.
E-mail us at showspells@gmail.com for questions, payment plan options or scholarship information.
