The Becoming

Event Details

Due to very recent health developments within The Becoming cast, the presentation of that installation and the performances, scheduled at the Painted Bride Art Center for June 5-7, have been postponed.  Creator Shavon Norris, the cast, and the entire creative team of The Becoming are disappointed by the disruption of the process of bringing to public view this searching and intimate look into the lives, occupations, and visioning of young Black girls/women.  They, and we at ArtPhilly, want to present it at a time when it can have its truest and most impactful manifestation. Please stay tuned for rescheduling information on The Becoming, most likely in Fall 2026, and meanwhile, lend your support to the other amazing projects that make up the What Now: 2026 festival.

Project Description

Movement/theater artist Shavon Norris invited 4 Black female-identifying Philadelphians between the ages of 13 and 39 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 fuel development of individual and collective storytelling, choreography, rediscovered and newly-created rituals, and songs. The “reveal” for the project is 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.