Abstract
In this 75-minute interactive program, participants will be invited to creatively reflect on personal and family histories of migration. Produced by Dylan Fresco and co-facilitated by Antonio Duke, Nimo H. Farah, and Fresco, this workshop includes acting exercises, writing prompts, and some very gentle movement. No prior experience is necessary, and all students are welcome.
This workshop is part of Dylan Fresco's week-long artist/teacher-in-residency at St. Thomas, during which time he will give a free and open to the public performance titled "Welcoming The Stranger" & "Christian Privilege": A Jewish Transplant’s Take on Making Minnesota Home on April 9th at noon in ASC 340.
Dylan Fresco is a theater artist, poet and musician who works as a writer, performer, producer, and educator with a diverse array of arts and community partners. Nimo Farah is a poet, and Antonio Duke is theater artist.
Antonio Duke is an actor and playwright who artistically aims to createstories that embody the black diaspora as authentically as possible. His writing explores intimate and epic aspects of mythology. He conjures most of his muse from black spiritualities, specifically from deities from the Afrocentric Yoruba, Santeria, and Vodou traditions. An alumnus of the University of Minnesota/Guthrie B.F.A Actor Training Program, Antonio has performed with Penumbra Theatre, Pillsbury House + Theatre, Climb Theatre, Nebraska Shakespeare Festival, and the Guthrie Theatre. His solo performance play Ashes of Moons premiered at Pillsbury House Theatre’s as a part of their Naked Stages Fellowship, and his solo performance play Tears of Moons was accepted into the Guthrie Theatre’s Solo Emerging Artist Celebration. He recently received both the Artist Initiative Grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board and Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship for his next solo piece Missing Mississippi Moons. He is the Co-Artistic Director of The Black Ensemble Players.
Nimo H. Farah is an artist and activist who uses language to express things she finds too confusing. Currently, she is working to develop her skills as an orator while blending Somali and English. She thinks herself charming and hilarious in the Somali language, but rarely does that humor translate into English. Nimo’s poetry and short stories have been published in Water- Stone Review, the Saint Paul Almanac, and the Loft Inroads chapter book. As a storyteller she has performed at the Black Dog Café, the Loft, and Pillsbury House. She co-founded SALLI, a nonprofit organization promoting art and literature in the Somali community. Nimo is a 2014 Loft Spoken Word Immersion Fellow and a 2014 Bush Fellow.
Dylan Fresco is a theater artist, poet and musician who works as a writer, performer, producer, and educator with a diverse array of arts and community partners. In his work, Dylan invites connections between people and communities through story, music, poetry and movement. Dylan has worked locally with the Guthrie, Penumbra, Pillsbury House Theatre, the Children’s Theatre Company, and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. He’s presented his solo plays at colleges and fringe festivals across the country. In addition, Dylan is an experienced facilitator, skilled at creating the space for people to share of themselves and connect with each other.
This session is sponsored by the Jay Phillips Center for Interfaith Learning, the Sacred Arts Festival, the Diversity Activities Board, and is in collaboration with the Center for the Common Good at the University of St. Thomas. To make an accessibility request, call Disability Resources at (651) 962-6315