You may remember dancer Ellen Smith Ahern as a pioneer, when in the midst of the COVID pandemic, she danced for the public at AVA Gallery. Since no one was allowed inside for public health reasons, her audience gathered outdoors and watched her through AVA’s big, beautiful windows.
Ahern is back, this time bringing Vulture Sister Song to Artistree in South Pomfret, Vermont. Here is the description of this unusual and artful presentation:
Vulture Sister Song
Artistree Community Arts Center, South Pomfret VT
Nov. 18-19th, 7pm
This wild, interdisciplinary performance explores human and more-than-human relationship through story, song, sculpture and dance. With live storytelling and folk music, a migrating herd of creature-like lanterns, curious movement and a healthy dose of humor, Vulture Sister Song brings together artists and community members to celebrate the possibilities of vibrant interdependence.
Link to details & accessible, sliding scale tickets: https://artistreevt.org/performances
Related workshops include Steam + Wood = Sculpture by Jacob Elias, who created the lantern sculptures for Vulture Sister Song. His workshop is a demonstration of how to use steam to bend wood for both utilitarian and artistic uses. He is “a violin maker and musician, but has made extended forays into painting, art history, woodworking and acting, as well as evolutionary biology and ecology, in which he holds a masters degree. . . . He works from his home studio outside of Ithaca, NY, where he resides with his brilliant partner Rachel, their cat, 10 chickens, and stick insect” (emphasis added). Tuesday, November 15, 6 to 8 p.m.
Also this week, Vulture Watching: Considering Our Relationship Through Ecology, History and Art. Lead Environmental Educator at the VT Institute of Natural Science (VINS), Anna Morris, will discuss the natural history and ecology of vultures, and Georgia-based writer, Josina Guess, will share writings inspired by watching and living in close proximity to black vultures and the unmarked graves of African American people. Wednesday, November 16, 6 to 7 p.m.
More info? Everything you need to know is available here on Artistree’s website.
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And in case you are wondering . . . Susan B. Apel shuttered a lifelong career as a law professor to continue an interest (since kindergarten) in writing. Her freelance business, The Next Word, includes literary and feature writing; her work has appeared in a variety of lit mags and other publications including Art New England, The Woven Tale Press, The Arts Fuse, and Persimmon Tree. She connects with her neighbors through Artful, her blog about arts and culture in the Upper Valley. She’s in love with the written word.