The Sunlight Zone (Santa Cruz, Toronto, London 2009)

sponsored by:
The Canada Council for the Arts
The Ontario Arts Council

The Sunlight Zone (2009) examined the relationships between people in urban centers and environmental systems and cycles that support them. While living in Toronto, I noticed that the local public was denied access to the local beaches after each summer rainstorm. Through my research I found that severe rainstorms overwhelm many cities outdated sewer systems, sending a torrent of raw sewage into our waterways. Through contemporary circus arts and dance, video projection, a music sound-scape and voice, The Sunlight Zone examined the idea of water consciousness. The following was a quote from the program for the show.

“In highly urbanized cities, littered with paved roads, scattered parks and an increasingly built- up environment, we typically give very little thought to the fact that we live in a watershed. We have lost our connection and understanding of our very source of life. Water consciousness is related to the idea of the water commons, water that must be declared and understood for all time to be common property. If water watershed management were always undertaken with deeply felt understanding of the water commons than we might have a better chance of protecting, sustaining and re-envisioning ways to live in the city in an ecologically sound manner.”

This production was part of the Santa Cruz, California Dance Festival 2009 and toured to
Toronto and London Ontario. Hundreds of grade school children came and saw the show. Productions
like The Sunlight Zone allow for the development of skills for understanding complex and often
abstract environmental systems and ideas. Performance art can act as a catalyst for further questions,
research and ultimately changes in behavior or attitudes with regards to how we interact with our
environment.