Manifesting (2016)

Manifesting, inspired by artist manifestos, flows from my curiosity about the interplay between desires and rules in the creative process. How can we articulate our voice in relationship to canonical “shoulds”?  When does rigor cross over into rigidity?  Rules, like masks, can both obscure and liberate our desires.  I constantly wonder whether I’m using rules to protect myself from the unknown or to access it.
–Hope Mohr

"There is always a radical incoherence and a radical instability. All certainties can only be held together by a text, a threat, an army, a fatwa, a sermon – that holds the fragments in an iron grip." –William Kentridge

Collaborators
Choreography/Direction: Hope Mohr in collaboration with the performers
Text and Lyrics: Hope Mohr
Performers: James Graham, Tara McArthur, Jane Selna, Jenny Stulberg, Kenny Toll, Wiley Naman Strasser
Musical Composition & Direction: Beth Wilmurt
Sound Design: Theodore J.H. Hulsker
Lighting Design: Gabe Maxson
Masks: Tiffany Amundson
Costumes: Tegan Schwab
Additional Vocal Coaching: Ashten Smith
Fight Coaching: Dave Maier

Performance History
Premiere: June 8, 2016, ODC Theater, with additional performances at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts’ Pubi, Shotgun Players's BLAST Festival

Writing About Process
Manifesting without Manifesto

Press
"Blessed be the rare postmodern choreographer possessed of a sense of humor"
-- Allan Ulrich, "Hope Mohr takes company to new heights in Manifesting," SF Chronicle, June 11th, 2016

"An evening of brilliant theatrical extremes"
-- Heather Desaulniers, "Hope Mohr Dance," Dance Commentary, June 12th, 2016

"An exquisite blend of intellectual and emotional response to environment, Mohr's creations initially appear extremely philosophical. But there is a soft underbelly, a sensitivity to human frailty that is consistently honored throughout, with a wicked sense of humor to boot. Mohr is an artists' artist"
-- Leigh Donlan, "Hope Mohr Dance, Manifesting," Ballet to the People, June 12th, 2016

"Virtuosic dancers manifest the visceral style that Mohr has employed in the spectacle of Manifesting"
-- Claudia Bauer, "Hope Mohr Dance -  Manifesting (premiere)," Dance Tabs, June 11th, 2016

Interview with Hope Mohr and ODC Writer in Residence, Marie Tollon.
-- Marie Tollon, “When Rules Lead to Process: A Conversation with Hope Mohr,” Triple Dog Dare, June 09, 2016

Live Interview with Hope Mohr and composer Beth Wilmurt on Manifesting.
-- David Latulippe, “Open Air,” June 7, 2016

Support
Creative development of Manifesting was made possible in part through the Fleishhacker Foundation, a residency at the Stanford Arts instituted, The Feedback (a program of the Joe Goode Dance Group), San Francisco Grants for the Arts, and generous individual donors.

Score (Text by Hope Mohr, Music by Beth Wilmurt)

Video