Surel's Place

Laurie Shapiro: Meditated Landscape
2024-10-13 10:00 - 18:00, 2024-10-12 10:00 - 18:00 (America/Boise) | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Open Studio

Laurie Shapiro creates all-encompassing, visually stimulating installations using a layering technique that combines painting, screenprinting, sewing, and sculpture. The environments created transport viewers into psychedelic womb-like environments: handcrafted, vibrant, and filled with patterns and colors that invite interaction and meditation. While at Surel’s Place, Laurie created various pieces using mixed media textiles and painting techniques. As a hard-of-hearing artist, she used her own mediation techniques to engage with the landscape of Idaho, creating new pieces that reflects her experiences and observations. Laurie is eager to engage with the community and share her work reflecting the natural beauty and diversity of Idaho. Laurie will also have prints and other work available for purchase.

Free

First Friday Art & Studio Stroll
2024-10-04 17:30 - 20:30, 2024-08-02 17:30 - 20:30, 2024-06-07 17:30 - 20:30
Garden City’s Surel L. Mitchell Live-Work-Create District is bustling with artists, artisans, and creative, artisanal businesses. Come to our neighborhood on the river as much as you can, but especially during our First Friday Art & Studio Stroll. You’ll find many locations open during the event, including artist studios, restaurants, and businesses featuring art events. In addition, there will be special events at many locations, including exhibits, readings, and performances.

More information about the next First Friday, is available at The LWC District First Friday Event Page on Facebook.

See below to view an interactive Google map of the First Friday participating venues.

Embroidery Workshop
2024-10-03 19:00 - 21:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Join Artist-in-Residence Laurie Shapiro for a fun and easy embroidery workshop suitable for kids and adults. In this session, we’ll be creating embroidered designs of your choice. While materials are provided, feel free to bring your own, such as a jacket or shirt, and come with an idea of what you’d like to embroider, whether it’s a printout or a personal drawing. We look forward to seeing your creativity!

BIOGRAPHY

Laurie Shapiro (b.1990) creates immersive dreamscapes based on interconnectivity and oneness with nature. Being hard-of-hearing, her experience of the outer world is often muted, while her inner world is amplified. These internal emotional experiences manifest as vibrant and captivating visuals, enveloping viewers in a realm of color and wonder. Paintings are particularly expressive, with subjects often using exaggerated gestures to communicate. “I primarily understand the world through visual stimuli and internal feelings, and this, in turn, colors all of my work,” she adds. Central to her artistic practice are screen-printed floral patterns and imagery—drawings of plants that “speak” to her.

Her art has been commissioned and shown at various institutions, including the Dyer Arts Center, San Diego Museum of Art, and San Luis Obispo Museum of Art. Over the past decade, Shapiro has regularly exhibited solo and group exhibitions with galleries and museums across the country and is the recipient of multiple grants. She has completed artist residencies at the American Academy in Rome, the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, and the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles. Shapiro received her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University and studied abroad at Bilkent University.

Laurie is offering another workshop: Introduction to Screen Printing, on September 28

Also, be sure to attend her installation, Meditated Landscape, as part of the Boise Open Studios Tour October 12th & 13th from 10am-6pm.

REGISTER HERE

Workshop: Introduction to Screen Printing
2024-09-28 13:00 - 15:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Artist-in-Residence Laurie Shapiro will guide you through the process of screen printing from start to finish. Screen printing is a versatile and accessible technique that can be used to create a wide range of designs. Shapiro will guide us through the process of creating a silk screen. Using premade designs by the artist, you will also have the opportunity to print on both fabric and paper. Participants will also have the option to create their own designs using a cut paper technique. This will be a fun and interactive experience for participants from age 6 to adults. (Guardian must also register with participants under 14.) You will leave the workshop with your own unique creation. Participants are encouranged to bring their own fabrics or materials that they’d like to print on.

BIOGRAPHY

Laurie Shapiro (CA) creates immersive dreamscapes based on interconnectivity and oneness with nature. Being hard-of-hearing, her experience of the outer world is often muted, while her inner world is amplified. These internal emotional experiences manifest as vibrant and captivating visuals, enveloping viewers in a realm of color and wonder. Paintings are particularly expressive, with subjects often using exaggerated gestures to communicate. “I primarily understand the world through visual stimuli and internal feelings, and this, in turn, colors all of my work,” she adds. Central to her artistic practice are screen-printed floral patterns and imagery—drawings of plants that “speak” to her.

Her art has been commissioned and shown at various institutions, including the Dyer Arts Center, San Diego Museum of Art, and San Luis Obispo Museum of Art. Over the past decade, Shapiro has regularly exhibited solo and group exhibitions with galleries and museums across the country and is the recipient of multiple grants. She has completed artist residencies at the American Academy in Rome, the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, and the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles. Shapiro received her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University and studied abroad at Bilkent University.

REGISTER HERE

BINGO! Fundraiser at The Shrine Social Club
2024-09-20 18:00 - 20:00 | The Shrine Social Club, 1118 W. Idaho St., Boise, Idaho, 83702, United States
Join us for an evening of classic bingo in the basement at the Shrine Social Club! All proceeds will go directly to Surel’s Place, so come purchase a board (or multiple boards) for a chance to win some great prizes, including an SP swag bag, tickets to upcoming Artist-in-Residence Rob Scheps‘s performance at The Sapphire Room on Oct. 23rd, or an original fine art print by alumna Willow Wells.

Reflection in Process: Galaxia Short Film Experimental
2024-09-13 19:00 - 20:30
NOTE: Content may not be appropriate for all ages

Robinson Moreno (VE/CO) spent his time at Surel’s Place working on his animation project “GALAXIA”, which is his first animation short film. He explored and experimented with different media and techniques to achieve a fluid ink on paper visual and animation style.

“This story came from an encounter with the real Galaxia near my home. Me, a skinny teenager and a fan of underground street culture. She, a fat woman in a black dress with pale skin and red lips, always lurking in the dark Caracas nights. A kind soul in sorrow, whose signature move was to lift her dress and show potential clients her vagina. Hers was the first pussy I saw. Years later, I have been dealing with the residues of a toxic relationship and the feelings of loneliness in a country in crisis. With this short film I want to explore how this bizarre first experience influenced my ideas about sex and love,” writes Robinson describing his film.

Robinson’s sketchbooks and the prints that form the animation sequences created during his residency can be viewed. He will also give a short art talk.

Weaving the Myth
2024-09-07 13:00 - 16:00
In this workshop, we’ll bring to life a character who carries a city in a bag full of memories. Starting with a line-art animation base, each participant will color at least three frames, transforming the story with their personal touch. We’ll use watercolors, ink, brushes, and markers to color this exciting project.

Journeying from the intimate confines of the studio to the bustling pulse of the city, we’ll delve into analog animation as a vehicle for self-expression and sharing. Together, we’ll craft a collaborative animated sequence, destined to become a vibrant street mural, extending our artistic reach beyond the workshop.

All materials will be provided.

BIOGRAPHY: Robinson Moreno

Robinson Moreno is a Venezuelan-Colombian artist based in Caracas that uses street art, engraving and moving images as tools for social denunciation, solidarity, and collective transformation. His first creative expression was through hundreds of graffiti and wallpaper interventions on Caracas and Bogota’s streets, often with images grounded on his working-class and peasant roots. Over the years, his artistic practice has been informed by his experiences with formal art training and social militancy.

His studies in Visual Arts and Visual Communication helped him to add new layers of reflection and control over his naturally naive, visceral, and grotesque visual style. His work also explores social practice and transformative action, collaborating with environmental and gender collectives from Caracas in the production of online and offline art interventions and campaigns.

His current work revolves around Venezuelan indigenous mythology, memories of his ancestors, and his experiences in Caracas’s underground, looking through the mirror of the unconscious and magical realism.

During his residency, he will produce some scenes of his first experimental short film, Galaxia

REGISTER HERE

Bruhaha & the Big Topsy Turvy at the GreenBox
2024-08-08 19:00 - 20:30 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Artist opening of this new GreenBox installation with Margaret Pope and Alice Vinxon.

Bruhaha (a noisy and overexcited reaction or response to something)

Topsy-turvy (a state of utter confusion)

Bruhaha & the Big Topsy-Turvy is a visual response to the chaos and turmoil one might experience in a single day, as well as the accumulation of those experiences over time and how they may affect how we see ourselves, our future, and our place in the world.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Margaret Pope is a contemporary visual artist who lives and works in the Treasure Valley. She received her Master of Fine Arts from Boise State University and currently teaches at the College of Idaho.

Follow her on Instagram @margaretpopeworks

Alice Vinson is an interdisciplinary artist and Associate Professor of Art at the College of Idaho. Her work explores social issues and the complexities of the human condition, often using contrasting elements to create tension and challenge viewer expectations. http://alicevinson.com/

This collaboration is the first between Margaret Pope and Alice Vinson and a means to highlight their combined material practice.

Daren Kendall: Across the Threshold
2024-08-08 19:00 - 20:30 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
EXHIBITION

Artist in Residence Daren Kendall will present Threshold, a sculptural exhibition and live event developed while in fellowship at Surel’s Place. Kendall’s artistic practice reflects the connection between sculpture, architecture, and place, as he gives form to the relationships and experiences cultivated while working on location. Often in collaboration with other artists, musicians, and dancers, his physical structures and instruments facilitate conversation and create a space to work and play. Drawings, models, and images provide interpretive scores and scripts to communicate the ineffable character and qualities of his experience. Recent artist residencies and collaborative events include, ArteSumapaz Artist Residency, Cundinamarca, Colombia; and Istituto Universitario Olandese di Storia dell’Arte, Florence, Italy.

Bruhaha & the Big Topsy Turvy at the Green Box
2024-08-02 17:30 - 20:30
Bruhaha (a noisy and overexcited reaction or response to something)

Topsy-turvy (a state of utter confusion)

Bruhaha & the Big Topsy-Turvy is a visual response to the chaos and turmoil one might experience in a single day, as well as the accumulation of those experiences over time and how they may affect how we see ourselves, our future, and our place in the world.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Margaret Pope is a contemporary visual artist who lives and works in the Treasure Valley. She received her Master of Fine Arts from Boise State University and currently teaches at the College of Idaho.

Follow her on Instagram @margaretpopeworks

Alice Vinson is an interdisciplinary artist and Associate Professor of Art at the College of Idaho. Her work explores social issues and the complexities of the human condition, often using contrasting elements to create tension and challenge viewer expectations. http://alicevinson.com/

This collaboration is the first between Margaret Pope and Alice Vinson and a means to highlight their combined material practice.

Finding Flow: An Improvisation Workshop
2024-07-27 13:00 - 16:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
This Collaborative Workshop introduces improvisational exercises through sound and movement designed to incorporate deep listening and awareness across creative disciplines. Local artist and dancer Callie Ritter and Surel’s Place Artist-in-Residence, Daren Kendall, will demonstrate and lead in a series of structured sound and movement techniques designed to develop physical and spatial awareness while building trust and communication in creative practice. This workshop invites you to explore how flow states can be cultivated in conversation with the environment and others to enrich and support your artistic process. Suitable for all ages and dress comfortably. No materials are required.

REGISTER HERE

Yooti (Yo-di) - To Rise in Culture Abstracted
2024-07-10 13:00 - 19:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
EXHIBITION

YOOTI (YO-DI) – TO RISE IN CULTURE ABSTRACTED

Join us for Gallery Hours for Artist-in-Residence Kit Julianto’s exhibition with closing song (Kit Julianto and Caylon Hedgepeth).

BIOGRAPHY

Kit Julianto, Yooti, is an enrolled member of the Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation and a descendent of the Navajo nation. He holds a BFA in Studio Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts of Santa Fe, New Mexico (2010) and a MFA in Secondary Education from Grand Canyon University (2018). He teaches Art, grades Pre-K to 12th at the Owyhee Combined Schools in Elko County School District. He believes in empowering youth to express themselves through different mediums such as painting, watercolor, pottery, drawing and art foundations in school and through workshops. Other outlets of using his artistry and culture are by presenting Native American workshops on how to play the Native flute, singing and hand drum making. His works reflect upon Native American culture, music, tradition, and storytelling, through various mediums, vibrant colors, and texture. His works of art have been shared throughout many Native and non Native communities, galleries, and gatherings.

This programing is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF), the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Idaho Commission on the Arts. Special thanks to Indigenous Idaho Alliance, the Riverside Hotel, and First Interstate Bank.

Yooti (Yo-di) - To Rise in Culture Abstracted
2024-07-09 13:00 - 19:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
EXHIBITION

YOOTI (TO-DI) – TO RISE IN CULTURE ABSTRACTED

Join us for Gallery Hours for Artist-in-Residence Kit Julianto’s exhibition with an Artist Talk at 6:00pm (with flute song).

BIOGRAPHY

Kit Julianto, Yooti, is an enrolled member of the Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation and a descendent of the Navajo nation. He holds a BFA in Studio Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts of Santa Fe, New Mexico (2010) and a MFA in Secondary Education from Grand Canyon University (2018). He teaches Art, grades Pre-K to 12th at the Owyhee Combined Schools in Elko County School District. He believes in empowering youth to express themselves through different mediums such as painting, watercolor, pottery, drawing and art foundations in school and through workshops. Other outlets of using his artistry and culture are by presenting Native American workshops on how to play the Native flute, singing and hand drum making. His works reflect upon Native American culture, music, tradition, and storytelling, through various mediums, vibrant colors, and texture. His works of art have been shared throughout many Native and non Native communities, galleries, and gatherings.

This programing is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF), the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Idaho Commission on the Arts. Special thanks to Indigenous Idaho Alliance, the Riverside Hotel, and First Interstate Bank.

Yooti (Yo-di) - To Rise in Culture Abstracted
2024-07-08 17:30 - 20:30 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
EXHIBITION

YOOTI (YO-DI) – TO RISE IN CULTURE ABSTRACTED

Join us for the Opening Reception for Artist-in-Residence Kit Julianto’s exhibition with an opening honor song (Caylon Hedgepeth) and closing song (Kit Julianto and Caylon Hedgepeth).

BIOGRAPHY

Kit Julianto, Yooti, is an enrolled member of the Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation and a descendent of the Navajo nation. He holds a BFA in Studio Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts of Santa Fe, New Mexico (2010) and a MFA in Secondary Education from Grand Canyon University (2018). He teaches Art, grades Pre-K to 12th at the Owyhee Combined Schools in Elko County School District. He believes in empowering youth to express themselves through different mediums such as painting, watercolor, pottery, drawing and art foundations in school and through workshops. Other outlets of using his artistry and culture are by presenting Native American workshops on how to play the Native flute, singing and hand drum making. His works reflect upon Native American culture, music, tradition, and storytelling, through various mediums, vibrant colors, and texture. His works of art have been shared throughout many Native and non Native communities, galleries, and gatherings.

This programing is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF), the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Idaho Commission on the Arts. Special thanks to Indigenous Idaho Alliance, the Riverside Hotel, and First Interstate Bank.

Workshop: Introduction to Textural Painting
2024-06-23 13:00 - 16:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Welcome to Introduction to Textural Painting with Kit Julianto! Join us for a hands-on workshop where you’ll learn the basics of creating beautiful textured paintings with this indigenous artist from the Duck Valley. Kit will help you embrace the freedom of brushstrokes and layers of color characteristic in his own work, leading to a completed painting of your own design. Discuss and demonstrate the use of warm and cool colors. Learn how to create texture with an uncontrolled style of abstract painting. Use the abstract painting as background for an image that can be the focal point of the painting.

This event will take place at Surel’s Place, a cozy and inspiring location perfect for unleashing your creativity. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced artist looking to try something new, this workshop is for you. Come explore different techniques, experiment with various materials, and let your imagination run wild. Don’t miss this opportunity to dive into the world of textural painting and create your own masterpiece!

This programming is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) and the National Endowment for the Arts and in partnership with the Indigenous Idaho Alliance.

Partial scholarships available by request to info@surelsplace.org.

Surel’s Place is accessible by wheelchair.

GET TICKETS: surelsplace.ludus.com

Open Studio: Kit Julianto
2024-06-22 16:00 - 19:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Come view painter Kit Julianto’s works in progress as he prepares for his exhibition “YOOTI (YO-DI) – TO RISE IN CULTURE ABSTRACTED” opening July 8th. Opening flute song will be by Kit Julianto.

BIOGRAPHYKit Julianto, Yooti, is an enrolled member of the Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation and a descendent of the Navajo nation. He holds a BFA in Studio Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts of Santa Fe, New Mexico (2010) and a MFA in Secondary Education from Grand Canyon University (2018). He teaches Art, grades Pre-K to 12th at the Owyhee Combined Schools in Elko County School District. He believes in empowering youth to express themselves through different mediums such as painting, watercolor, pottery, drawing and art foundations in school and through workshops. His works reflect upon Native American culture, music, tradition, and storytelling, through various mediums, vibrant colors, and texture. His works of art have been shared throughout many Native and non Native communities, galleries, and gatherings.

This programming is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) and the National Endowment for the Arts and in partnership with the Indigenous Idaho Alliance.

Surel’s Place is accessible by wheelchair.

Open Studio: Kit Julianto
2024-06-21 16:00 - 19:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Come view painter Kit Julianto’s works in progress as he prepares for his exhibition “YOOTI (YO-DI) – TO RISE IN CULTURE ABSTRACTED” opening July 8th. Opening honor song will be by Caylon Hedgepeth.

BIOGRAPHYKit Julianto, Yooti, is an enrolled member of the Shoshone Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation and a descendent of the Navajo nation. He holds a BFA in Studio Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts of Santa Fe, New Mexico (2010) and a MFA in Secondary Education from Grand Canyon University (2018). He teaches Art, grades Pre-K to 12th at the Owyhee Combined Schools in Elko County School District. He believes in empowering youth to express themselves through different mediums such as painting, watercolor, pottery, drawing and art foundations in school and through workshops. His works reflect upon Native American culture, music, tradition, and storytelling, through various mediums, vibrant colors, and texture. His works of art have been shared throughout many Native and non Native communities, galleries, and gatherings.

This programming is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) and the National Endowment for the Arts and in partnership with the Indigenous Idaho Alliance.

Surel’s Place is accessible by wheelchair.

Surel's Place Fundraising Gala
2024-06-08 18:00 - 21:30 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Join us for this celebration, our largest and most popular fundraiser held every other year. At the heart of the event is a silent auction of incredible art made out of Shrinky Dinks (the shrinkable art toy from the 1970s) by dozens of local artists. This year’s event is 70’s-themed, so dress in your best groovy attire or come as you wish to have fun and help Surel’s Place raise vital funds for our 2024 operations! The evening will feature entertainment, party games, a live DJ, dinner by Noodle Monster & dessert by The Tony Cannoli (with a Gala+Dinner Ticket), drinks, etc.

On top of our silent auction, you will be treated with a live auction, which has incredible packages and items that you can only access by coming to the event, such as . . . your own personal concert at your home by Curtis Stigers with dinner courtesy of Ansots, a collection of rare collectible whiskeys, and many more!

GET TICKETS

Featured Shrinky Dink Artists:Brecken BirdSuzanne ChetwoodHeather Elizabeth BeeLisa Flowers RossRick FriesenJulia GreenBetty HayzlettSara HillLiz HiltonNicole HitchockDerek & Danielle HurdStephanie InmanShelley JundJaki KatzAshley KennedyLauren KistnerMarianne KonvalinkaSue LattaJerri LiskSusan MadacsiBrigette NelsonMelissa OsgoodLorelle RauNikki RussoCassandra SchifflerKaty ShanafeltJason SieversJessie SwimeleyRachel TeannalachRandy Van DyckApril VanDeGrift

Thank you to our generous sponsors:

Shrinky Dinks Workshop
2024-06-01 13:00 - 16:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Get ready for some big fun with some small art at this Shrinky Dinks all-ages workshop led with the knowledgable guidance of artist Lauren Kistner. This workshop is a chance to explore the medium of Shrinky Dinks, the plastic art toy from the 1970s. This is a family-friendly, drop-in workshop, so bring some friends and get in the Shrinky Dinks mood in anticipation of our Fundraising Gala and Shrinky Dink Art Auction to follow on Saturday, June 8th from 6:00pm – 9:30pm.

Rick Friesen, Ukrainian Immigrants, Dubois, Idaho, 1920, 2022

Katy Shanafelt, Orandallusion, 2018

Ashley Dreyfus, Enchanted Forest, 2022

Macbeth
2024-05-19 14:00 - 16:00, 2024-05-16 19:00 - 2024-05-18 21:00, 2024-05-12 14:00 - 16:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
THE BOISE BARD PLAYERS PRESENTMACBETH AT SUREL’S PLACEMay 9th – May 19thBy William Shakespeare | Directed by Justin Tharpe

GET TICKETS$20 | general admission$35 | generous admission$300 | box seat of 4 (one per showtime)

In a world thirsty for power and shadowed by prophecy, one man will descend into madness and murder to seize the throne.

The Boise Bard Players present an epic tale of ambition, betrayal, and fate in Macbeth. Feel the chill of foretold destinies and the heat of fiery ambitions as the drama unfolds in the intimate back garden of Surel’s Place.

This May 9-19, 2024, witness the fall of a hero-turned-tyrant in a gripping spectacle that will leave you questioning the price of power.

* Tickets for any showing of Macbeth will also be honored at the play reading of Four Riffs for a Sailor on May 6th at The Creative Space. Simply show your Macbeth ticket at the door for free admission.

Macbeth
2024-05-09 19:00 - 2024-05-11 21:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
THE BOISE BARD PLAYERS PRESENTMACBETH AT SUREL’S PLACEMay 9th – May 19thBy William Shakespeare | Directed by Justin Tharpe

GET TICKETS$20 | general admission$35 | generous admission$300 | box seat of 4 (one per showtime)pay-what-you-can tickets | only available on Thursday, May 9th

In a world thirsty for power and shadowed by prophecy, one man will descend into madness and murder to seize the throne.

The Boise Bard Players present an epic tale of ambition, betrayal, and fate in Macbeth. Feel the chill of foretold destinies and the heat of fiery ambitions as the drama unfolds in the intimate back garden of Surel’s Place.

This May 9-19, 2024, witness the fall of a hero-turned-tyrant in a gripping spectacle that will leave you questioning the price of power.

* Tickets for any showing of Macbeth will also be honored at the play reading of Four Riffs for a Sailor on May 6th at The Creative Space. Simply show your Macbeth ticket at the door for free admission.

Four Riffs for a Sailor
2024-05-06 20:00 - 21:30 | The Creative Space, 121 E 34th Street, Garden City, 83714
The Odyssey without Odysseus? Four Riffs for a Sailor is play that retells the story of the Odyssey through the interlocking monologues (and sometimes dialogues) of four women in it–Calypso, Nausicaa, Circe, and Penelope–with no Odysseus, at least not onstage, though of course he gets talked about. Playwright Monica Raymond arrived at this residency with about 2/3 of the script written and is spending the first three weeks writing the final third, and then playing with the pieces, cutting and pasting, and finding the right order. She is spending the week before this event with five local actors rehearsing and exploring the text to be shared with you in its first voyage.

Calypso is the “whore of peace,” the goddess who heals men from the psychic wounds of war enough so that they’re fit–well, fit enough, anyway–to return to the civilian world. Nausicaa is a child, just over the edge of puberty, seduced by Odysseus’s stories and adventures. Circe is the self-contained artist who nonetheless finds herself vulnerable to Odysseus. And Penelope, whose story we think we know the best of all of these, her fidelity, her efforts to stave off the suitors, her blessed reunion with Odysseus at the end– here turns out to be quite different.

Local author, screenwriter, and Surel’s Place panelist Samantha Silva responded to Monica’s residency application by writing “Raymond’s CV is dizzyingly extensive and impressive. I wanted to like the writing so much…….And I LOVED the writing. It’s crisp, poetic, contemporary. Such a brilliant idea for a play. I had tears in my eyes at the end of Calypso’s last monologue.”

Featuring:Elke MyersJanet LoJason HaskinsKatie PrestonKiala Siman

Casting by Buffie Main, Artistic Director of Alley Repertory TheaterAlley Rep is delighted to incubate and support Surel’s Place artists.

GET TICKETS: surelsplace.ludus.com

This programming is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF), the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Idaho Commission on the Arts.

Old Stories, New Voices with Monica Raymond
2024-04-20 13:00 - 16:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
Why does a fellow want a girl like hera girl who’s merely lovely?Why can’t a fellow ever once prefera girl who’s merely me?-Rogers and Hammerstein Stepsister’s Lament from CINDERELLABored with always centering too-good-to-be-true Cinderella and her prince? Let’s tell the story from the point of view of a wicked stepsister, the magic coach, or even the glass slipper. In this writing workshop with poet and playwright Monica Raymond, we’ll begin with some exercises in inner listening, then allow the voices of objects and minor characters from well-worn tales to reveal secrets, destabilize and re-enchant those stories. While Raymond will provide suggestions, please feel free to bring your own favorite fairy tale, Bible story, myth, or canonical narrative (Macbeth? A Christmas Carol?) to work with. We’ll be creating new work, not workshopping previously written pieces. Sharing what you write during the workshop will be optional, though welcome.

This workshop is for fiction writers, poets, playwrights and screenwriters, visual artists, anyone who’s interested. Scholarships available by request to info@surelsplace.org. This programming is supported in part by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) and the National Endowment for the Arts.

BIOGRAPHY

Monica Raymond (Massachusetts) is a poet, playwright, lyricist and librettist. Primarily a poet for the first half of her life, she began auditing courses in performance art while teaching writing and interdisciplinary arts at the Boston Museum School. While she still makes the occasional solo performance piece for herself, she soon realized that she prefers to write scripts for other people. Her first full-length script, FASTER, about the death of a teenage anorexic, got her admitted to Smith College’s under-the-radar MFA program, from which she graduated in 2000. Since then she’s had close to ninety performances or staged readings of her work in the US and Canada.

“My work, particularly in theater, usually addresses some thorny knot of a world problem for which I do not have a solution, only many questions and a whorl of feelings and sensations,” Monica elaborates. “Creating strong, complex women characters is central.” Her multiple prize-winning full-length The Owl Girl was an extended meditation on the situation in Israel/Palestine. Another play, A to Z, looks at the 1968 murder of a Black male activist through the stories of his girlfriend, sister and first grade teacher. Monica’s work often has a magical, spiritual aspect, stretching from the mundane into mystery.

womanhood
2024-04-07 11:00 - 17:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
GALLERY HOURS 11:00am – 5:00pm

GALLERY TOUR at 4:00pm

How does the nation you are in determine your gender role? What specific notions of masculinity and femininity within the construct of nationhood determine this? Perhaps an artist from outside the United States is best able to help our community explore these questions. Polish artist Karolina Majewska’s sculptural work explores objectification and repression around the politics of the body. “The process of casting my body has given me the perspective to self-observe and accept the mortality of my physical form,” she says. During her residency at Surel’s Place, she will create intimate, imperfect self-portraits using casting techniques to build installations that are also metaphors for the body of a woman.

BIOGRAPHY: Karolina Majewska Freeing is a visual artist based in Warsaw, Poland. She holds an MFA in Photography, Video, and Related Media from the School of Visual Arts in New York (2017) and an MFA in Painting from the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts (2014). Karolina’s recent work explores the fragility and organic qualities of the human body. Her installations feature natural materials such as wax, wood, and clay. Karolina’s work has been exhibited in Poland, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Austria, Cyprus, Switzerland and the United States. She has participated in conferences and talks related to her practice during Manifesta 12; Rixc, Art and Science Festival, Open Field Conference, and more.

womanhood
2024-04-06 11:00 - 18:00 | Surel’s Place, 212 E. 33rd Street, Garden City, 83714, United States
GALLERY HOURS 11:00am – 6:00pm

ARTIST TALK at 4:00pm

How does the nation you are in determine your gender role? What specific notions of masculinity and femininity within the construct of nationhood determine this? Perhaps an artist from outside the United States is best able to help our community explore these questions. Polish artist Karolina Majewska’s sculptural work explores objectification and repression around the politics of the body. “The process of casting my body has given me the perspective to self-observe and accept the mortality of my physical form,” she says. During her residency at Surel’s Place, she will create intimate, imperfect self-portraits using casting techniques to build installations that are also metaphors for the body of a woman.

BIOGRAPHY: Karolina Majewska Freeing is a visual artist based in Warsaw, Poland. She holds an MFA in Photography, Video, and Related Media from the School of Visual Arts in New York (2017) and an MFA in Painting from the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts (2014). Karolina’s recent work explores the fragility and organic qualities of the human body. Her installations feature natural materials such as wax, wood, and clay. Karolina’s work has been exhibited in Poland, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Austria, Cyprus, Switzerland and the United States. She has participated in conferences and talks related to her practice during Manifesta 12; Rixc, Art and Science Festival, Open Field Conference, and more.
