News

Apr
1
to Apr 1

2023 HERE Artist Residency Program

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is thrilled to announce that their collective has been selected for the 2023 HERE Artist Residency Program (HARP) to develop the world-premiere of their new performance commission, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom.

One of the most robust residency programs in the country and serving as a national model, HARP provides a commission, development support, career planning, and a full production to hybrid artists, all within a collaborative environment of peers working across disparate art forms – including theatre, dance, music, puppetry, visual art, and new media.

For more info visit: here.org/programs/harp

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May
3
7:00 PM19:00

HERE RAW: Upstairs, In Our Bedroom

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be sharing early research and ideas from their HARP-commissioned project, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom, as part of HERE’s Resident Artist Workshops (RAW) Series. The program will also include a post-show talkbalk with S.A.S. co-directors and choreographers, Hilary Brown-Istrefi and Briana Brown-Tipley.

Upstairs, In Our Bedroom is an autobiographical performance that radically reimagines Same As Sister’s experiences as female identical twins of color next to those of outsider authors, June & Jennifer Gibbons (a.k.a. The Silent Twins). Utilizing dance, text, VR technology, and puppetry, they will reveal the powerful and painful intersections between twinship, blackness, madness, and art-making.

For more info visit: here.org/shows/here-raw

In front of a white wall, Same As Sister, biracial black and white twin sisters, mirror one another's hair fixing gestures. The sister in the background is dressed in black, with the sister in the foreground wearing a brown afro wig and red sweater.
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Feb
23
12:00 AM00:00

Couched Podcast EP19: Dismantling Anti-Black Logics

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is elated that their first ever podcast, Dismantling Anti-Black Logics: Creating Alternative Forms of Knowledge and Storytelling, was in the company of Couched Podcast hosts, Dr. Romy Reading, PhD and Dr. Ally Merchant, and fellow guest, psychoanalyst Chanda D. Griffin.

Podcast Description: Join us for a heartfelt conversation between psychoanalyst, Chanda D. Griffin and choreographers, Hilary Brown-Istrefi and Briana Brown-Tipley. Our guests share their embodied and scholarly knowledge about anti-blackness and creativity. They inspire and challenge us to think beyond the confines of white supremacist structures and invite us into new imaginaries.

To listen visit: couchedpodcast.org/dismantling-anti-black-logics

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Feb
10
to Feb 18

2024 Workman Arts Winter Intensive

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be co-facilitating an exploratory choreographic intensive, REIMAGINING MADNESS THROUGH REENACTMENT, with disability arts advisor Rachel da Silveira Gorman as part of Workman Arts’ Winter 2024 Course Programming.

Inspired by their new work-in-progress, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom, and ongoing research on the deconstruction and reimagining of representations of race and mental illness from popular cinema and television, they will guide a cohort of BIPOC participants through the creation of an episodic portrayal of madness referencing lived, historical and/or invented experiences.

For more info visit: workmanarts.com/education

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Oct
28
5:00 PM17:00

2023 Rendezvous With Madness Festival

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be joined by York University’s 3Dance research team, Lora Appel and Rachel da Silveira Gorman, to give an artist talk and AR/VR demonstration — Bridging Dimensions of Dance Performance and Mental Health through Virtual Reality, about their collaborative project in development, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom at CAMH Auditorium.

This event is a co-presentation with Dancemakers as part of Workman Arts’ RENDEZVOUS WITH MADNESS FESTIVAL (Oct 27 - Nov 5) — The first and largest arts and mental health festival in the world.

Using art as the entry point to illuminate and investigate the realities and mythologies surrounding mental illness and addiction, Rendezvous With Madness spotlights the human capacity for endurance in the face of great challenges. This year’s tagline “Mind the Gaps” considers gaps in infrastructure and the systematic “cracks” people, particularly those with lived experience of mental health and addiction, fall through. It is a call to think through what is missing and how things could be better.

For more info visit: workmanarts.com/rendezvous-with-madness

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Oct
27
4:38 PM16:38

CBC Arts Profile: Upstairs, In Our Bedroom

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) was visited by CBC Arts’ journalist Genelle Levy during their Dancemakers-supported residency at Dance Arts Institute to discuss their history as a performance collective and current project in-development, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom.

Upstairs, In Our Bedroom is an interdisciplinary performance that places Same As Sister’s experiences as female identical twins of color next to the real-life story of outsider authors June & Jennifer Gibbons (a.k.a. The Silent Twins).

To read the online profile, The twin sisters bringing the tragic story of the 'Silent Twins' to the stage, visit: cbc.ca/arts

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Oct
1
to Oct 1

2023-24 Dancemakers Guest Curator Programming

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is excited to announce that they have been selected to participate in Dancemakers’ 2023-24 Guest Curator Programming in support of their hybrid performance project, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom.

As guest curators, S.A.S. will host a month-long development residency at Dance Arts Institute, an artist talk & AR/VR demonstration during the 2023 Rendezvous With Madness Festival, and a BIPOC-centered choreographic workshop in partnership with Workman Arts at The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).

For more info visit: dancemakers.org/upstairs-in-our-bedroom

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Apr
10
to Apr 14

2022-23 Plug-N-Play Residency at Toronto Dance Theatre

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will take part in Toronto Dance Theatre’s 2022-23 Plug-N-Play Residencies this Spring to begin research for their HARP-commissioned performance project, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom.

Consisting of week-long, half-day residencies in the studio free-of-charge, Plug-N-Play is beneficial for choreographers or creators in body-centred practices who are looking for dedicated time to dig deeper into a current project or idea, or who are seeking access to a large space that allows them to experiment with collaborators.

For more info visit: tdt.org/collaborate/plug-n-play-residencies

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Aug
29
12:00 AM00:00

2022 Dora Mavor Moore Award Nomination

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is incredibly honored to announce that their performance work, This is NOT a Remount, originally commissioned as part of The Miserere Project, a co-production with Citadel + Compagnie, has been nominated for a Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts’ 2022 Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Production (Dance Division). Congratulations to all the 2022 Nominees!

For more info visit: tapa.ca/nominations

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May
18
to May 21

The Miserere Project At The Citadel

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Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will premiere This is NOT a Remount, as part of The Miserere Project, a co-production between Danielle Baskerville and Citadel + Compagnie’s 2022 Bright Nights Performing Arts Series.

On the 41st anniversary of the creation of David Earle’s celebrated masterwork, Miserere, three choreographers have been commissioned to create contemporary responses using Earle’s Miserere as their creative seed.

The evening will be comprised of three world premieres by choreographers Same As Sister (S.A.S.), Brodie Stevenson and a film by Penny Couchie, as well as a remount of Earle’s Miserere.

For more info visit: citadelcie.com/event/the-miserere-project

*The May 21st performances will be livestreamed and the recording will be available online until May 31 at 11:59 pm EDT.

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May
16
12:00 AM00:00

2022 Foundation for Contemporary Arts Emergency Grant

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is thrilled to announce that they are a two-time recipient of the Foundation for Contemporary Arts’ Emergency Grant Program.

S.A.S. will use their 2022 Emergency Grant in Dance to present This is NOT a Remount at The Citadel: Ross Center for Dance in Toronto, Canada, with performances May 18-21.

For more info visit: foundationforcontemporaryarts.org/grants/emergency-grants/recipients

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Apr
29
7:00 PM19:00

Spring Movement | Crossroads At Center for Performance Research

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be sharing an in-person screening of This is NOT a Remount, as part of Spring Movement | Crossroads: Curated by Pioneers Go East Collective. The program will also include live-performances by Angela Schöpke Gonzalez and Nattie Trogdon + Hollis Bartlett.

Each year, CPR – Center for Performance Research presents two weekend-long festivals of works by local and international emerging and established artists in dance and performance. Spring Movement and Fall Movement feature finished works and premieres by six different artists, companies, or collectives, and often include unique collaborations with filmmakers, musicians, and visual artists.

For more info visit: cprnyc.org/events/2022springmovement

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Dec
4
4:00 PM16:00

This is NOT a Remount: Virtual Screening + Artist Q&A

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) invite you to join them for the virtual screening of This is NOT a Remount, a video collaboration with performers ALEXA GRÆ, Annie Wang & Jessie Young, dramaturg Susan Mar Landau, and videographer Yuan Liu.

The screening will be followed by a pre-recorded artist q&a* with live chat to provide insight into S.A.S.'s creative team and process during the making of This is NOT a Remount, as both a commissioned video and live-performance project.

The link will go live on Same As Sister's YouTube channel at the date and time specified above.

Livestream Link: youtu.be/HMFKe51cU6U

*Captioning will be provided during the artist q&a portion of the livestream.

Three performers are warming up in a triangular formation and holding white pieces of paper. In the background there is a side balcony, tiered stage with archway, and hardwood flooring.
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Nov
4
12:00 AM00:00

Citadel + Compagnie 2021/22 Season Announcement

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is incredibly honored and excited to be a part of Citadel + Compagnie’s 2021/22 Season in their hometown of Toronto, Canada. S.A.S.’s This is NOT a Remount will be performed as part of The Miserere Project, a shared evening of three world premieres by Penny Couchie, Same As Sister (S.A.S.), and Brodie Stevenson, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of David Earle’s masterwork, Miserere.

"The pandemic has highlighted the importance of the performing arts, and its unique ability to connect people in a shared human experience,” says Artistic Director Laurence Lemieux. “The 21/22 Season brings together a wide range of artists exploring how and where we connect. It is an extremely interesting time to be programming, as we will all be looking at work through a new post-pandemic lense. I hope for this season to pay tribute to the power of the creative process to drive artists forward, and the strength of artists’ desire to continue to provoke and inspire through dance.”

For more info visit: announcing-citadel-21-22-season

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Oct
21
to Oct 23

2021 EstroGenius EstroFilm Festival

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be sharing two experimental video collaborations, an animated dance short, Kallax and music video, This is NOT a Remount, as part of the First Annual EstroGenius EstroFilm Festival, presented in partnership with Frigid New York. Both videos will be screened in-person at The Kraine Theater and online via livestream.

EstroGenius celebrates its 21st anniversary with a riotous collection of films by women, gender non-conforming, non-binary, and trans dance-makers, playwrights, experimental performers, teens, musicians, burlesque performers, noise artists, filmmakers, djs and anyone else looking to break molds and crack gender codes.

For more info visit: extrofromestro.org

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Sep
2
6:30 PM18:30

Base Residency Open House in Seattle

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be presenting an in-person work-in-progress showing of their upcoming commission, This is NOT a Remount, as part of their rescheduled 2019/20 Base Residency at Base: Experimental Arts + Space in Seattle, Washington.

This is NOT a Remount, is an interdisciplinary reenactment as tribute to the 41st anniversary of Canadian choreographer David Earle’s Miserere. Merging true and imagined stories from Toronto Dance Theatre’s 1981 production, the performance is a behind-the-scenes homage to the original cast, three of whom were lost to the AIDS epidemic.

For more info visit: thisisbase.org/same-as-sister-residency

Audience must RSVP to attend this limited capacity event. Proof of vaccination and masks are required.

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Aug
18
to Sep 7

Base Residency in Seattle

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Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is thrilled to be a part of Base: Experimental Arts + Space’s 2019/20 cohort of Resident Artists including Coley Mixan, Jenna Eady, and Degenerate Art Ensemble.

The Base Residency Program provides artists with an experience of drastic freedom in an atmosphere free of external pressure. For three uninterrupted weeks, Resident Artists dive deep into their disciplines using 24/7 access to Base for development, self challenge, and experimentation. Each Residency culminates in an Open House that offers a public vantage point on a particular stage in the creative development of a project or specific aspects of an artist’s practice.

During their time at Base, S.A.S. will begin research and creation for their upcoming commission, This is NOT a Remount, with performers Kristina Hay and Jamie Robison and dramaturg Susan Mar Landau.

For more info visit: thisisbase.org/same-as-sister-residency

2019/20 Base Residency was rescheduled to August 2021 due to COVID-19 restrictions.

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May
1
8:00 PM20:00

Pioneers Go East's Virtual Crossroads

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be sharing an animated video of Kallax, during Pioneers Go East Collective’s Crossroads Series. This virtual edition of Crossroads, a series dedicated to empowering LGBTQ and feminist artists in dialogue with their communities, will also feature video works by: Yasmeen Enahora & Ori Flomin, and Beth Graczyk.

The free event will be hosted on Zoom.

For more info visit: eventbrite.com/e/crossroads-same-as-sister-flomin-and-enahora-graczyk

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Jan
27
12:00 AM00:00

2021-22 Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is honored to announce that they were selected as a recommended Alternate and Finalist for the Jerome Foundation’s 2021-22 Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship in Dance, and are the recipients of a grant towards the creation and production of new work.

Congratulations to the Fellows: Ephrat Asherie, Vie Boheme, J. Bouey, DejaJoelle, Fana Fraser, Jerron Herman, Herb Johnson III, LeilAwa, Jordan Demetrius Lloyd, and Taja Will, as well as the other Finalists: Hadar Ahuvia, Maria Bauman-Morales, Alexandra Bodnarchuk, Moriah Evans, Kayla Farrish, Davalois Fearon, Molly Lieber and Eleanor Smith, Malcolm Low, Kaleena Miller, Music From The Sole (Leonardo Sandoval, Gregory Richardson), Christopher Núñez, Valerie Oliveiro, and Mariana Valencia.

For more info visit: jeromefdn.org/jerome-hill-artist-fellows-2021-22

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May
12
to Aug 31

19 Acts of COVID-19 Bravery: VIR{US} Launch

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Same As Sister (S.A.S.)’s digital site-specific series, VIR{US}, is launching today with Piece 1/5, HOW TO: The Art of Invisible Makeup on YouTube, a collaboration with performer Annie Wang and dramaturg Susan Mar Landau.

The series explores how information is disseminated and absorbed via social media as a metaphor for the spread of the Coronavirus, and is part of The People Movers’ 19 Acts of COVID-19 Bravery Exhibition, curated by Brendan Drake and Kate Ladenheim.

For more info visit: actsofbravery.thepeoplemovers.co

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Apr
20
to Aug 31

19 Acts of COVID-19 Bravery

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Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is excited to participate in The People Movers’ 19 Acts of COVID-19 Bravery Exhibition, with their digital site-specific series, VIR{US}, exploring how information is disseminated and absorbed via social media as a metaphor for the spread of the Coronavirus.

19 Acts of COVID-19 Bravery, is a call to push our creativity, as well as the frames and framing of our work. We are recruiting 19 artists to build works responding to otherwise everyday occurrences that, during COVID-19, can be re-framed as courageous, provocative, or acts of communal care. These performances are meant exclusively for digital spaces, to be seen and absorbed while we are socially distant. Through this performance series, we hope to challenge the ways we can connect through technology, through our bodies, and through time, using the full might of our cleverness, our potential for abstraction, and our propensity for hope.” — Curators, Brendan Drake and Kate Ladenheim.

For more info visit: actsofbravery.thepeoplemovers.co

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Mar
31
to Apr 4

Extro from Estro: Short Dance Films

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is grateful to the 2020 EstroGenius Festival for giving the virtual space to share their experimental short, Odd Jewels: Beauty Under Mask, a collaboration with cinematographer, Aitor Mendilibar, via their online platform, Extro from Estro.

Estro on Film: Short Dance Films, also features works by Garnet Henderson and Nick Tyson, Alice Gosti / MALACARNE, and NIC Kay.

For more info visit: extrofromestro.org/event-info/estro-on-film-short-dance-films

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Mar
3
12:00 AM00:00

2020 Queens Arts Fund New Work Grant

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is honored to announce that they have been awarded a Queens Council on the Arts’ 2020 Queens Arts Fund New Work Grant in Multi-Disciplinary Performance.

They will use the Grant to support the creation of their work, This is NOT a Remount, a commission for The Citadel’s 2022 Bright Nights Series, Toronto.

For more info visit: queenscouncilarts.org/2020-qaf-awardees

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Jan
30
to Feb 1

POP Performance: Women in Motion at Gibney

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will premiere their newest work, Kallax, as part of Women in Motion NYC’s 2019-20 Season at Gibney.

Against the recognizable yet anonymous backdrop of an IKEA store, the young indigenous Sámi recording artist of Kallax, performed by Kristina Hay, will go on a journey of ascent into American celebrity. Joined by the supporting cast of Leigh Atwell, Briana Brown-Tipley, Hilary Brown-Istrefi, and Jamie Robinson, she will encounter the aspirations, expectations, fears, and consumptions of our contemporary society.

The performances are the culmination of WiM’s Commissioning Program, and will also feature works by choreographers, asubtout (Katy Pyle + Eleanor Hullihan) and Rebecca Stenn.

For more info visit: gibneydance.org/event/pop-performance

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Dec
14
12:00 AM00:00

Video Art Miden with Erasmus+ in Greece

Same As Sister (S.A.S.)’s dance short, Odd Jewels: Beauty Under Mask, will be screened as part of the Erasmus+ 2019-20 Educational Program (Active Student-Active Citizen): Introduction to Video-Art for Teenagers, a collaboration between Video Art Miden and the 2nd Junior High School of Kalamáta in Greece.

For more info visit: festivalmiden.gr/en/educational-program

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Sep
18
8:00 PM20:00

Pioneers Go East's Crossroads at Judson Church

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) will be sharing a work-in-progress excerpt of Kallax (2019-20 Women in Motion NYC Commission), during Pioneers Go East Collective’s Crossroads: Crosswinds, Crosscurrents, Crossfires, at Judson Memorial Church.

This edition of Crossroads, a series dedicated to empowering LGBTQ and feminist artists in dialogue with their communities, will also feature performances by: Chris Riffle, Proteo Media/Bree Breeden & Kathleen Kelley, and Erick Montes/Danceable Projects.

This is a free event open to the community.

For more info visit: pioneersgoeast.org/crossroads-series

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Jul
9
12:00 AM00:00

2019 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is incredibly honored to announce that they have been awarded a New York State Council on the Arts’ 2019 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship in Choreography.

They are looking forward to using the unrestricted grant to support the expansion of their project, The Exciting Event…, with performers Kristina Hay and Rahmus Rifical and dramaturg Susan Mar Landau in 2021.

For more info visit: current.nyfa.org/introducing-nyscanyfa-artist-fellowship-program

Against a black background, two horizontal lines frame stacked text that reads, “I AM A NYSCA/NYFA ARTIST FELLOW”. Both elements are glowing like an orange and white fluorescent sign. At the centre bottom are the NYFA and NYSCA logos.
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Apr
28
to May 11

Video Art Miden at Ibrida Festival in Italy

Same As Sister (S.A.S.)’s dance short, Odd Jewels: Beauty Under Mask, will be screened through the video dance selection, vDance: poses, movements and short narratives, curated by Margarita Stavraki, at Marmo – Libreria d’Arte Contemporanea, as part of the 2019 Ibrida Intermedia Arts Festival in Forlì, Italy.

For more info visit: festivalmiden.gr/en/video-dance-by-video-art-miden-ibrida-festival

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Apr
5
to Apr 25

Video Art Miden with MOMus in Greece

Same As Sister (S.A.S.)’s dance short, Odd Jewels: Beauty Under Mask, will be screened during the month-long exhibition, Videolands, a collaboration between Video Art Miden and MOMus - State Museum of Contemporary Art, at the Experimental Center for the Arts in Thessaloniki, Greece.

For more info visit: festivalmiden.gr/en/videolands-exhibition

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Mar
23
to Mar 24

2019 EstroGenius Festival: Women in Motion's Artists + Artists

Same As Sister (S.A.S.) is excited to guest curate choreographer mersiha messiha | CIRCUITDEBRIS and her newest project, SEVDAH Body, for Women in Motion NYC’s Artists + Artists as part of the 2019 EstroGenius Festival.

The two-day shared program will also feature works by Amanda Krische and Em Papineau + Sofia Engelman Dance. There will be a special post-show conversation between the curators and artists after Sunday’s performances.

For more info visit: horsetrade.info/event

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