In spring 2023, I met online with the members of Virago to begin generating material for an upcoming project. In my youth, I participated in a number “devised theater” projects, in which theatrical works were created in rehearsal through a diverse series of “material generation” workshops.

I’ve always loved many aspects of this kind of creative process; the open-mindedness, the way it lets a piece “emerge” organically from nothing, the way it creates a space for intimate collaboration, the way it takes the pressure off the first stages of the creative process and frees us from the weight of making material that is “good enough.”

In the new music world, a lot of ensembles want to maximize efficiency in the creative process, and I’m incredibly grateful to Virago for their willingness and enthusiasm for this meandering, non-linear creative experiment. Each individual member of this group is so creative, these workshops were an absolute blast.

The final project will be presented in 2025, and we can’t wait to share the fruits of this collaboration with the world.  In January 2024, we had the chance to try out a bunch of ideas in a series of in-person workshops at Andy Arts in Detroit. We presented the fruits of this work through a works-in-progress show at The Congregation, on a program that also presented work by Estar Cohen and Maddy Wildman. This collaboration is ongoing, with a larger performance of the finished work planned for 2025.