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“Afrofuturism expresses notions of Black identity, agency and freedom through art, creative works and activism that envision liberated futures for Black life.

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“Afrofuturism expresses notions of Black identity, agency and freedom through art, creative works and activism that envision liberated futures for Black life.

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Dreams are so elusive and widely interpreted that they make a great breeding ground for art. For Monica Brown, her latest exhibition incorporates this desire to capture temporal shifts in memory and time, with the deeply personal exploration of grief.

Using inspiration from old photographs, portraits of her late parents, and incorporating unfinished paintings into her current work, Brown has woven a narrative of time travel, warmth, intimacy, love, connection and celebration. She considers these pieces to be a collage of sorts, sprung from a simple desire to move on an idea.

The piece that starts off her exhibition is based on a dream of Brown's that occurred long after her mom had passed away, but on the day her father passed. While most of the dream was nonsensical, at one point her mother ascended with wings like a butterfly, and it gave her a deep feeling of excitement and peace.

She translated this dream into a stunning painting of her parents in a passionate embrace. It has a surreal quality that shines through while highlighting the sheer romance of the subjects. It seems to speak to the mélange of yesterday and today, the abstract quality of time, and how it contracts. Then there are the spaces in between, like the spaces between intimacy and separation; darkness and lightness; love and what is lost through memory.

Brown also attempts to infuse the energy of Afrofuturism into her work.

"I feel that the 'Afrofuture' resides in dimensions/realities/timelines other than the one that we currently occupy including (and especially) the liminal spaces," she says. "Afrofuturism can also be like timelessness. So a space that's like eternal, the space that's into the future and then also into the next dimension. I would say the leaps between this world and the next."

The exhibition was curated by feeling more than process. As Brown was deciding what to include, she realized that more than one painting, made at different points in time and not necessarily with the same motif in mind, looked like part of the same continuation. She called the denouement "magical."

A connected but distinct part of "Into the Field of Awareness Dances Time" involves two very abstract pieces. In one, her mother is sitting on the couch. In another, two masses are placed above a different mass, meant to allude to spirits rising from the earth-this one in particular, called "Procession," seems to convey a loved one's imprint of memory, the trace of it, even when they're long gone. She describes the pieces as a way to process "a beginning and an end" and to see just how much she could abstract familiar imagery.

Brown's exploration with the dance of time shows a gracious respect for this honor, to explore the spaces in between.
"Into the Field of Awareness Dances Time" at ARC Gallery, 1463 West Chicago, through August 11.

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Afrofuturism, Abstraction and Liminal Spaces: A Review of "Into the Field of Awareness Dances Time" by Monica Brown at ARC Gallery

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Using inspiration from old photographs, portraits of her late parents, and incorporating unfinished paintings into her current work, Brown has weaved a narrative of time travel, warmth, intimacy, love, connection and celebration.

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Jazz and Afrofuturism: From Sun Ra to Flying Lotus

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Afrofuturism pioneer Sun Ra’s music blazed new paths and continues to influence modern musicians.

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Liminal Space: A threshold or transitional area between two different spaces, states, or experiences. In literature and drama, it often represents a place of transformation and uncertainty.

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Liminal Space: A threshold or transitional area between two different spaces, states, or experiences. In literature and drama, it often represents a place of transformation and uncertainty.

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Lynn Nottage is a playwright. a screenwriter and installation artist. She joins August Wilson as the only other playwright of color to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice, and, moreover, she is the only woman—of any race—to be awarded that distinction. Her plays have been produced widely in the United States and throughout the world. Most recently, Nottage premiered MJ the Musical, directed by Christopher Wheeldon and featuring the music of Michael Jackson, at the Neil Simon Theater on Broadway, Clyde's directed by Kate Whoriskey at Second Stage Theater on Broadway and an opera adaptation of her play Intimate Apparel composed by Ricky Ian Gordon and directed by Bart Sher, commissioned by The Met/Lincoln Center Theater and co-curated with Director Miranda Haymon the Performance Installation The Watering Hole at the Signature Theater. Her other work includes, Floyd's (retitled- Clyde's) (Guthrie Theater), Mlima’s Tale (Public Theater/ Kiln), By The Way, Meet Vera Stark (Lilly Award, Drama Desk Nomination- Second Stage/Signature Theater), Ruined (Pulitzer Prize, OBIE, Lucille Lortel, New York Drama Critics’ Circle, Audelco, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Award- MTC/Goodman Theater); Intimate Apparel (American Theatre Critics and New York Drama Critics’ Circle Awards for Best Play Center Stage/SCR/ Roundabout Theater); Crumbs from the Table of Joy; and POOF!

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“I very recently found out what the connective tissue is between all my plays…one it deals with women of the African diaspora and by and large women who are marginalized and who are trying to define self… the other thread is that most of my plays deal with unrequited love.”- Lynn Nottage

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“I very recently found out what the connective tissue is between all my plays…one it deals with women of the African diaspora and by and large women who are marginalized and who are trying to define self… the other thread is that most of my plays deal with unrequited love.”- Lynn Nottage

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Q&A With Lynn Nottage, Hosted by York College

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From “The Indefinable Ingenuity of Lynn Nottage” by Faedra Chatard Carpenter

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From “The Indefinable Ingenuity of Lynn Nottage” by Faedra Chatard Carpenter

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“Lynn Nottage is a darn good playwright. Of course, “darn good” is an understatement. It is common knowledge that Lynn Nottage is quite extraordinary. She is not only celebrated for her sharp, resonant dialogue and vivid characterizations, but she is a master of comedy and satire as well as searing, soul-searching drama. Subsequently, she has the uncanny ability to capitalize on both the weight and levity of a given scenario, whether it is inspired by conventional day-to-day routines, anomalous life-or-death predicaments, or the sheer ubiquity of life’s unpredictability. The astounding variety of subjects and styles found in Nottage’s writing has resulted in a recurring refrain among those familiar with her canon. Artists and scholars alike frequently refer to Nottage’s “complexity,” readily observing the absence of an identifiable “writerly voice” among her plays.

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In Clyde's, Lynn Nottage explores liminal spaces, through the setting of a truck stop sandwich shop that serves as a threshold between the past and future for its formerly incarcerated employees. This play engages with elements of Afrofuturism by existing in a timeless realm, full of possibilities and envisioning a future where these characters reclaim agency over their lives. Challenging societal narratives around redemption and the reintegration of formerly incarcerated individuals, the literal interpretation examines the difficulties of returning to society for formerly incarcerated people. Difficulties like self-doubt, circumstances out of their control and the negative outlook of others threaten of the freedom of these characters. The kitchen, a space of creation and collaboration, becomes a stage where the characters perform daily rituals that are both ordinary and profound, crafting sandwiches that symbolize their aspirations and new identities. This performance within the play highlights the societal rituals that dictate the acceptance of individuals post-incarceration, urging the audience to reconsider how society can better support transformative journeys for those seeking a second chance.

When viewed more abstractly, Clyde's can be interpreted in a number of ways including ritual and transformation, a representation of purgatory, the struggle between good and evil and even an allegory for religion with Monty being a Jesus figure encouraging others to not be tempted by the devilish Clyde.

(All or parts of this summary can be used in programs, lobby displays or other promotional material with credit to the author: Lindsay A. Jenkins)

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Liminal Space: A threshold or transitional area between two different spaces, states, or experiences. In literature and drama, it often represents a place of transformation and uncertainty.

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Liminal Space: A threshold or transitional area between two different spaces, states, or experiences. In literature and drama, it often represents a place of transformation and uncertainty.

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Verdant: Richly green in color, typically describing lush vegetation or covered with healthy green plants.

Afrofuturism: A cultural aesthetic, philosophy of science, and philosophy of history that explores the developing intersection of African diaspora culture with technology. It addresses themes and concerns of the African diaspora through technoculture and science fiction.

Limbo: A state of uncertainty or being in an intermediate place. In theological context, it refers to a boundary condition of the afterlife, a space between Heaven and Hell, where souls await their final judgment.

Sumptuous: Luxuriously fine or large; lavish, splendid, or expensive.

Transcendent: Going beyond ordinary limits; surpassing; exceeding. In spiritual or philosophical use, it refers to an existence or experience beyond the normal or physical level.

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For the playlist: "The Magic City's close comparator is John Coltrane's Ascension (Impulse, 1966), which inhabited the same bracing zeitgeist. Both title tracks were recorded within a few weeks of each other, "The Magic City" on May 25, 1965, "Ascension" on June 28."

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For the playlist: "The Magic City's close comparator is John Coltrane's Ascension (Impulse, 1966), which inhabited the same bracing zeitgeist. Both title tracks were recorded within a few weeks of each other, "The Magic City" on May 25, 1965, "Ascension" on June 28."

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Sun Ra: Ten Great AfroFuturist Albums article @ All About Jazz

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Sun Ra: Ten Great AfroFuturist Albums article by Chris May, published on February 22, 2022 at All About Jazz. Find more Building a Jazz Library articles

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For the Playlist: Ascension by John Coltrane

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For the Playlist: Ascension by John Coltrane

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National Museum of African American History and Culture

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Afrofuturism expresses notions of Black identity, agency and freedom through art, creative works and activism that envision liberated futures for Black life.

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Discard Linear Time

Emphasizes being present, emphasizes transformation, de-emphasizes “progress”

Music/ Movement

Culture and history recorded in dance, oral tradition, song and dance.

Repetition to Increase Emotional Intensity "Rhythm is the architecture of being, the inner dynamic that gives it form, the pure expression of the life force." -Léopold Senghor

Audience Participation

Everyone on one accord as equal contributor. Witness.

Call and Response

A tool for audience participation

Liminal Space A place or moment of transition. In this space, there is no hierarchy.

Community

Finding joy in community once the ritual is complete.

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Scholarship on Liminal Space and Rites of Passage

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Scholarship on Liminal Space and Rites of Passage

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Liminal Space and Ecstatic Experiences (think about the light changes during sandwich descriptions)

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Liminal Space and Ecstatic Experiences (think about the light changes during sandwich descriptions)

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JASON. Understand what?

RAFAEL. Ohhh. That it ain’t just about the sandwich.

LETITIA. Montrellous is a sensei. Drops garlic aioli like a realness bomb. He knows what we only wish to know.

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"A little salt makes the food taste good, too much salt makes the food inedible."- Rafael, pg. 14

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"A little salt makes the food taste good, too much salt makes the food inedible."- Rafael, pg. 14

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"We all done something. And we just biding our time ’til we can get to another place."- Letitia, pg. 20

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"We all done something. And we just biding our time ’til we can get to another place."- Letitia, pg. 20

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"That’s not how it works here. It’s kind of a ritual, we speak the truth. Then, let go and cook. Montrellous taught us that. We leave the pain in the pan. We got each other’s backs, that's how we get back up."- Rafael, pg. 32

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"That’s not how it works here. It’s kind of a ritual, we speak the truth. Then, let go and cook. Montrellous taught us that. We leave the pain in the pan. We got each other’s backs, that's how we get back up."- Rafael, pg. 32

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Montrellous meticulously prepares a sandwich. Rafael, Jason, and Letitia watch. The symphony.

Montrellous cuts the sandwich into four sections.

MONTRELLOUS. Take in that aroma. What do you smell?

Montrellous passes around a sprig of thyme and a chili pepper. They each take a turn smelling it.

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I can show you how to make it, but balance is as important as imbalance. Where my hand leads, may not be where your hand takes you. It’s the intangible grace of flavors and aromas that tell your story, and that’s only achieved through practice.

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And you know what they say, cuz you left prison don't mean you outta prison. But, remember everything we do here is to escape that mentality. This kitchen, these ingredients, these are our tools. We have what we need. So, let’s cook.

They all pick up knives and dive into prep work.

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"Montrellous slows Letitia’s hands, she gets into a more even and relaxed rhythm of cutting." pg. 44

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"Montrellous slows Letitia’s hands, she gets into a more even and relaxed rhythm of cutting." pg. 44

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"Clyde answers to people who don’t want us to succeed."- Montrellous, pg. 55

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"Clyde answers to people who don’t want us to succeed."- Montrellous, pg. 55

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"Cuz y’all know what you’ve done, and you don’t deserve it. And a little salt and pepper ain’t gonna make the truth taste any better. (To Montrellous.) So, I suggest you put on your apron and remember why you’re here. "- Clyde, pg. 55

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"Cuz y’all know what you’ve done, and you don’t deserve it. And a little salt and pepper ain’t gonna make the truth taste any better. (To Montrellous.) So, I suggest you put on your apron and remember why you’re here. "- Clyde, pg. 55

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A heightened moment of the crew using the kitchen activities to restore harmony. They have become more in sync, graceful and proficient. The act of making food together is resurrect- ing their spirits.

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"But, what if we turned this into somethin’ we’re all proud of? Huh? Something that defies expectations. Transcendent." Montrellous, pg. 63

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"But, what if we turned this into somethin’ we’re all proud of? Huh? Something that defies expectations. Transcendent." Montrellous, pg. 63

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CLYDE. Look around. You’re all losers, felons, fucking criminals.

JASON. // Speak for yourself.
LETITIA. I resent that.
RAFAEL. // I’m a sous-chef!
LETITIA. I did my time. Paid my debt. I’m many things, but I ain’t a loser. I’m gonna be a real chef.
CLYDE. Don’t disappoint me by having aspirations. Social hour’s over. Pick up the pace, or tomorrow I can get a fresh batch of nobodies to do your job. And I’ll make sure you go back to whatever hell you came from. Try me!

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"We all make our choices. You never know whatcha gonna do when you meet the devil at the crossroads."- Montrellous, pg. 62

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"We all make our choices. You never know whatcha gonna do when you meet the devil at the crossroads."- Montrellous, pg. 62

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LETITIA. Do you think a perfect sandwich can be made?

MONTRELLOUS. Perhaps, or will it just awaken another longing. Let’s see.

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Who I am
My name is Lindsay A. Jenkins but my friends and clients call me L.J. I started my career in Texas, in the area of arts administration. In the wake of the 2008 Recession, I was unemployed and looking for work. Though I never saw myself as a teacher, my friend connected me with her school and I began my journey in theatre education. I spent 5 years as a Middle and High School theatre teacher, department head, curriculum writer and trainer. After spending time in both large public districts and small charter schools, I began to truly realize how systemic racism and implicit biases were affecting education in Texas and I walked away.

What I do
I decided to start fresh in California and began to pursue an M.A. in Theatre Arts. During my program I discovered my passion for dramaturgy and opportunity to take my observations from the world of education and apply them to dismantling biased practices in the development, contextualization and critique of Black theatre.

I currently work as a freelance dramaturg in Los Angeles, CA. My work as a dramaturg includes research, producing, lobby displays, audience engagement, script consultations and script coverage. I am still passionate about education and currently serve as a Guest Lecturer at Pomona College. I specialize in Black Performance Heritage and am particularly passionate about working with artists across mediums on the development of new work. I am also an experienced yoga instructor. I have been teaching and leading movement and mediation classes for the past 10 years.

Why is this my life's work
This is my life's work because I am tired of not seeing myself represented in art.
This is my life's work because I am tired of my people's stories not being told and told accurately.
This is my life's work because I am tired of having weed White supremacy out of teachings, methods and practices that are supposedly universal and "fact".
This is my life's work because I'm tired of people not putting respect on our rituals, traditions and culture.
This is my life's work because I am passionate about Black experiences, Black performances and Black art and I am tired of having to explain why.

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