We believe in play and experimentation. We believe in community and the importance of gathering. We believe in place-making and the urgency of continually examining how we relate to each other and the world through storytelling.

GATHERING RITES

What is a Gathering?

To Ocean Ana Rising it is the development of boldly relevant live storytelling such that we spark critical conversations, consider possibilities for change, and deepen our celebration of life as it is illuminated in the theater.

GATHERING RITES is a series of socially-engaged art and culture events and activities (WORKSHOPS & COMMUNITY PROVOCATIONS) culminating in two theatrical productions developed by Ocean Ana Rising, Inc. (OAR) - Gypsy and the Bully Door and Waafrika 1-2-3: A Queerly Scripted African Fantasia

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about project & process!

Gypsy and the Bully Door
By Nina Angela Mercer, directed by Eric Ruffin

Sara has a dream, but life just keeps happening in ways that seem to pull that dream further and further away at every turn, especially when she keeps losing the people she loves. Though she fights to hold on, determined to shake loose the haunting of many past lives, there’s a cost. There’s also a way to heal. But the choice to be well is often more difficult than it seems.

This story is a multi-media, immersive, and interactive ritual experience set to the undeniable call of DC’s Gogo music, led by The Mayor, our funk conductor and “lead talker,” while the full cast of vibrant characters becomes The Pocket Roll Call, a percussive band of characters who fuel and foil Sara’s movements, no matter where she goes to escape.

Waafrika 1-2-3: A Queerly Scripted African Fantasia
By Nick Hadikwa Mwaluko, directed by Eric Ruffin

Meet Awino; s/he is he is African is non-binary is a non-believer in gender. Meet Bobby who self-identifies as a biracial, African American, queer, lesbian woman and Peace Corps volunteer. But in 1992 Kenya, Awino and Bobby do not exist ...

Workshops & Community Provocations