The Story of Our Journey: Phoenix, AZ Showing on Friday, January 22, 2021
After two successful online showings in 2020, the commissioner of the the project, The City of Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture, will be showing The Story of Our Journey on their YouTube channel here at 5pm Mountain Time on January 22nd. The showing will be embedded at this site for your convenience, or you may interact directly with the video on YouTube during the performance.
Later this year, we are excited for the live premiere and performances at academic and other institutions across the United States and internationally when it is safe to do so. If you are interested in the making of the video, the use of audio footage, and the coordination of events please contact us.
ABOUT THE WORK
The Story of Our Journey recounts the journey of refugees worldwide through personal experiences of individuals interviewed by Their Story is Our Story (TSOS), and was done in collaboration with Dylan Findley, the composer, and Csaba Jevtic-Somlai, the principle clarinet in the project. This multimedia composition recounts the escape from homelands to foreign lands. The beginning of the piece places the viewer as a bystander to the interviewing process and takes them on a journey through why the individual refugees had to leave, their struggle along the journey and during arrival in new lands, to their hopes for the future and belonging in their new homes.
MOVEMENTS
- ”So…”(Introduction)
- ”An Opportunity”- Rhenald and Felix Cross the Sahara Desert
- “I Counted Them Myself”- Ali and Zarrin Leave Afghanistan
- “The Water We Drink”- Eduardo, Adriana, and Elizabeth Flee Gangs; An Account of Refugees’ Travel Through Foreign Lands.
- “Go, Go, Go!”-Rhenald and Felix Leave Libya; Zerrin Crosses the Sea
- “Deep in My Heart”- Rohingya Children Sing and Play with Interviewers; Elizabeth, Eduardo, and Adrianna Pass Through U. S. Immigration Control
- “Still Looking”- Refugees Seek Stability and Integration
Official Statement on the Detention of Refugees and Ongoing Community Violence
With another death in Minnesota and continued violence toward individuals and groups standing up for their communities, we acknowledge the profound fear and uncertainty people are feeling--not just locally, but across the country.
On top of this, there are reports that refugees invited and admitted to our country through the U.S. Refugee Admission Program are now being detained, meaning that our new friends and neighbors feel that fear most acutely.
Refugees have already fled violence and persecution once. They came here legally, seeking safety. In moments like these, we reaffirm our commitment to building communities where refugees and immigrants can live without fear. Where they can go to work, send their children to school, and build lives of dignity and belonging.
We call for due process, accountability, and humanity in all immigration enforcement operations. We call upon our leaders to demand the demilitarization of our neighborhoods and cities. And we call on all of us to continue the work of welcoming and protecting those who have been forcibly displaced from their homes.