Waters of Oblivion

Waters of Oblivion Conceived and Directed by Cinthia Chen Created by: Kayla Asbell, Chen-Wei Liao, Sarah Lurie, Tina Hanaé Miller, Monica Sanborn, Elizabeth Sun, and Maya Simone Z. In Chinese folklore, the Lady of Forgetfulness, Meng Po, feeds the souls of the deceased a soup to help them forget their previous lives before reincarnating into their next. Meng Po serves as a gateway to ruminate over what ties us to the past, present, and future. Her role as the gatekeeper of memories and reincarnation reminds us that life does not dematerialize, but instead, always transitions and transforms. This event asks participants to reconsider the nature of memory and loss in their own lives, stirring in cultural anecdotes, neuroscience, and interviews with loved ones. How do we hold space to communally recount and remember significant moments in our lives, and how does it alter all of us to do so? During this time of seismic loss, when many traditional grieving rituals - communal gatherings, vigils, and funerals - have been unable to proceed as usual, this piece draws inspiration from ancestral rites, online platforms and communities, as well as research on catharsis, in order to reimagine and play with new rituals for the moment. Conceived as a multi-platform experience, Waters of Oblivion is an in-person and virtual hybrid experiential piece that wades deep into the underworld to observe what collectively emerges and what can be left behind. Mitu's Expansion Works Program: Expansion Works pushes artists to work across disciplines and incubate alternative modes of artistic inquiry. This environment provides artists with the resources, space, and support to experiment outside of their primary practice. These works create space for artists to intersect other mediums with live performance like visual art, dance, musical composition, architecture, filmmaking, and interactive technology. This program invites our community into Theater Mitu's process of experimentation and actively engages audiences in interrogating how we define theater and how we best share and articulate the stories of our time. Performance Expectations: This is a non-narrative performance installation, which is experienced entirely on headphones. This is an immersive installation. We welcome everyone to bring an offering to a loved one who has passed to be placed on the communal altar. This offering can be anything: this person's favorite food, a token, a poem, or even a memory. Each performance is approximately 45min in duration with multiple performances occurring on each day (please see the schedule for exact timings). There is no intermission. A gender neutral bathroom will be available before and after each performance. The use of strobe/flashing lights, loud audio, provocative language, and references to real mental/physical violence are used in this performance. COVID-19 Safety Protocols: Proof of vaccination will be required for all audience members to enter the venue and attend a performance and may include: excelsior pass, vaccination card, or photo of vaccination card and valid ID. Masks for all audience members will be required. Anyone exhibiting any symptoms of COVID-19, or who has been exposed to someone with COVID-19 within 2 weeks prior to their arrival, are asked to please stay home. Anyone exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms upon arrival will be asked to leave in order to keep our community safe. Theater Mitu reserves the right to revise these safety requirements at any time towards creating a safe environment for our community. All performers and staff of Theater Mitu are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Accessibility: Theater Mitu will work with patrons who require additional accessibility measures to access this performance. Please email info@theatermitu.org to inquire about potential accessibility arrangements.