Archive of Loneliness brings light to the isolation of seniors and how the end of life deserves our attention just as much as the beginning. Drawing from first person audio recordings of a family member living isolated in long-term care, Archive of Loneliness embodies the spatial and corporeal tones of loneliness.

The sound score and audio story arranged by Jackson Fairfax-Perry dances throughout the space alongside two performers to create a deep thoughtful swim into the waiting and in-between spaces of loneliness, amplifying the sub-linguistic states of despair and the desire to connect.

Discounted tickets are sold as a Double Bill with Flower Bed

Creative Team

Creative Direction/Choreography Sara Coffin
Composer and Sound Design Jackson Fairfax-Perry
Performers and Movement Contributions Darryl Tracy and Matthew Lumley
Audio Stories the late John Paterson

The creation of this work was supported by Eastern Front Theatre/Early Stages Festival, Arts Nova Scotia, studio hours through Mocean Dance and Olga Milosevich. Thank you to Brian Riley for the initial voicemail sound extraction and a deep gratitude to the Paterson family for their support and blessing to carry Uncle John’s voice forward into this new artistic expression.

 ASL interpretation will be provided for the May 10th performance.

        Childcare will be provided for this event. Please use this REGISTRATION FORM.

Biographies

Sara Coffin, Dance Artist, Choreographer
Sara Coffin is an award winning dance artist, choreographer, dance educator and Co-Artistic Director of Mocean Dance. Coffin has been teaching and creating interdisciplinary contemporary dance work for over twenty years. She received the NS Established Artist Award in 2018, her MFA in Choreography (Smith College), BFA in Dance (Simon Fraser) University and BSc Kinesiology Science (Dalhousie). Coffin has created over 30 dance works, her choreographic work has been presented in many prominent Canadian dance festivals and in the United States. Her research interests include interdisciplinary collaboration, technology as an extension of the body, contact improvisation and emergent frameworks for composition/ performance, and the poetic junction between vulnerability, resiliency, and courage. www.saracoffin.ca

Darryl Tracy, Dance Artist
Darryl Tracy is a Toronto-based artist who loves human movement and expression. He is involved in dance, choreography, movement facilitation, conditioning and teaching. He has performed with many Canadian and European choreographers over the last 25 years and has also created 42 works through commissions and self-productions. He was on faculty at School of Toronto Dance Theatre (now the Dance Arts Institute) for over 18 years under the artistic direction of Pat Fraser. Currently, Darryl teaches Anatomy at the National Ballet School Teachers Training Program. He is a neurological rehabilitation physiotherapist in Toronto in the private and public sector. Most recently Tracy co-created a new solo alongside Marie-Josee Chartier entitled “six ways to peel an orange” (premiere date pending).

Matthew Lumley, Actor, Movement
Matthew Lumley is a Kjipuktuk/Halifax-based actor, grateful to work with this wonderful group of artists! Recent theatre work includes Becca (Théâtre populaire d’Acadie), Wood Buffalo (Theatre New Brunswick) Schoolhouse, Macbeth, Elapultiek, Frankenstein, In This Light, Animal Farm, North Mountain Vanya (Two Planks), The Realistic Jones, Heaven Above/Heaven Below (KAZAN Theatre), Hamlet (Below the Salt/Neptune Theatre), The Little Years (Matchstick Theatre), This Is Nowhere (Zuppa Theatre). TV/film work includes Aversion (Emotion Pictures) Sullivan’s Crossing (CTV; upcoming) Normal Scotia (Bell TV1), Extant (HDM), Look At Me (Afro Viking Pictures), Hopeless Romantic (Northeast Films), Polaroid (Dimension Films), Weirdos (Shadow Shows), Mr. D (CBC). Matthew wrote and performed in First Weekend and Surf Gods (airing on CBC). Matthew studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse (NYC) and York University (Toronto). Many thanks to Sara Coffin for inviting me to dance, and to the amazing Mayworks Festival!

Jackson Fairfax-Perry, composer / sound design
Jackson Fairfax-Perry (he/him) is an award winning African Nova Scotian composer, sound designer, musician and musical director living in Kjipuktuk, Mi’kma’ki (Halifax, Nova Scotia). For years, Jackson has honed his skills as an in demand saxophonist and keyboardist both on the road and locally with artists such as Hillsburn and David Myles, among others. He collaborates frequently with local hip hop and r&b artist Aquakultre, co-writing songs and working as the musical director for his live band. A prominent collaborator with local theatre and dance artists, Jackson has composed and created sound designs for companies such as 2b theatre company, Eastern Front Theatre, Ship’s Company Theatre, and Mocean Dance among numerous others. Recent credits include Matriarchs (Aquakultre, Nocturne), Dance Nation (Keep Good (Theatre) Company, Heist), Sea Unseen (Mocean Dance, The Sable Island Institute), Deepwater (The Villains Theatre) and Downed Hearts (Ship’s Company Theatre, Eastern Front Theatre, Matchstick Theatre).

Banner photo: Daniel Wittnebel