Braiding Water Immersive Event

Braiding Water

a tender exploration of grief and a reimagining of mourning practices

Brooklyn ,   New York

Experience hosted by THE EXPONENTIAL FESTIVAL

Braiding Water is a tender exploration of grief and a reimagining of mourning practices for unnamed losses and the dead who could not be honored. "Drawing loosely on historical tragedies in China from the 1950s to the present, I trace the experiences of loss and silence across four generations in my family through this solo performance. Merging technology with Traditional Chinese Massage therapy, I delve into the somatic relics of grief, seeking to understand the rituals and physical actions that accompany emotional processing.​" ​Created and Performed by Xiaoyue Zhang Co-directed by Brittney Brady, Xiaoyue Zhang Dramaturg by Brittney Brady Lighting Design & Creative Technical Collaboration by Kelley Shih Produced by Xiaoyue Zhang, Esmé Maria Ng Photo by Cinthia Chen​ ​Find them: xiaoyuezhang.org @___soft_rush Thanks to LA Performance Practice and Theater MITU for supporting the development of this piece. ​​"My aim is to unearth the somatic remnants of unexpressed grief within my body. By merging the playfulness of technology with the familiarity of Traditional Chinese Massage therapy, I delve into the somatic relics of grief. Through repetitive actions, I seek a sense of ritual, striving to understand the needs of those in mourning. What physical actions accompany emotional processing, and what is released through this energetic accumulation?" Braiding Water examines the unreliability of memory and the interplay between individual and historical narratives, all while attempting to digitize the otherworldly presence of those we’ve lost.​ Content warnings: The show includes incense and fog.... Show More

Audience Role

Mourner. Mourner.

Content Advisories

  • Fog/haze

  • Themes around grief and mourning

  • Use of incense

  • 16 +

Interaction Advisories

  • No physical contact with performers

Mobility Advisories

  • No mobility advisories

  • Event is wheelchair accessible.

Tags

grief
Mourning
Ritual

$25.00

Show ticket details

Location

T

THE EXPONENTIAL FESTIVAL

Hosting immersive events on EI since December, 2024

THE EXPONENTIAL FESTIVAL JANUARY’S BROOKLYN-BASED THEATRE FESTIVAL ~ A pleasure, a mess, a thrill, and a dream. ~​ ​ Exponential is a month-long January festival dedicated to New York City-based emerging artists working in experimental performance. The participants in this multi-artist, multi-venue festival are committed to ecstatic creativity in the face of commercialism. Exponential is driven by inclusiveness and a diversity of artists, forms, and ideas coupled with utopian resource-sharing, mentoring and the championing of risky, rigorous work in eclectic fields. THE EXPONENTIAL FESTIVAL JANUARY’S BROOKLYN-BASED THEATRE FESTIVAL ~ A pleasure, a mess, a thrill, and a dream. ~​ ​ Exponential is a month-long January festival dedicated to New York City-based emerging artists working in experimental performance. The participants in this multi-artist, multi-venue festival are committed to ecstatic creativity in the face of commercialism. Exponential is driven by inclusiveness and a diversity of artists, forms, and ideas coupled with utopian resource-sharing, mentoring and the championing of risky, rigorous work in eclectic fields.