The Becoming

Movement/theater artist Shavon Norris will invite 5 Black female-identifying Philadelphians between the ages of 10 and 40 to participate in an interview/oral history process designed to probe the conditions, challenges and opportunities that Black girls and young women face as they approach adulthood and middle age. Interview excerpts, along with still/video portraits will fuel development of individual and collective storytelling, choreography, rediscovered and newly-created rituals, and songs. The “reveal” for the project will be an exhibition of the portraits and listening booths for hearing/viewing excerpts of the interviews. Visitors to the exhibition will be able to record their own responses to prompts that focus on how they perceive present-day conditions and prospects for Black women and girls, and how Black women can foster positive change and provide guidance and support for themselves, their families and communities. On the final day of the exhibition, project participants will present/perform artifacts of their storytelling, gestures and choreography, songs, and rituals. Following the performance and communal dinner, audience members will be invited to share their reactions and exchange thoughts and ideas about ways of strengthening intergenerational connections and supportive strategies among Black women and girls.