Tara Cheyenne Performance

Pants


Since 2007, TCP has been creating and performing kinetic theatrical expressions through exquisitely realized characters, crafted choreography, a healthy dose of comedy, and lashings of tragedy. Bridging the divide between dance and theatre, we are known for our humour, pathos, cultural relevance and have been described as “a gateway drug to dance”. TCP is a leader in community engagement, audience and artist development, offering workshops, discussions, and mentorship opportunities with each project. We have been presented in Vancouver by The Cultch, The Firehall, The Dance Centre, The Shadbolt Centre for the Arts among others, and have toured extensively throughout BC. Artistic Director Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg’s choreography is a staple of the Arts Club Theatre Company, Bard on the Beach, and the PuSH Festival. Tara also mentors in a variety of programs including the Riotous Youth, SFU Contemporary Dance, Modus Operandi, The Shoe Project and our own Startle Reflex residency program.

Pants

Solo dance-theatre (stand-up comedy with dance breaks) by veteran
dance artists Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg. Can one reimagine gender
from inside a middle-aged body while standing at the playground
caught in the no “man’s” land between the “moms” and the “dads”?
Pants take a deep dive into the shallow end of the gender binary
through raw comedy and dance that crawls inside our “packaging”.
What happens to one’s flimsy identity, built on blending, when one’s
offspring sheds the binary before recess? Profoundly personal storytelling is delivered through alarming comedy and movement that reveals the heart of the matter. Created in collaboration with Kate Franklin(co-choreographer), Cameron Mackenzie (creative collaboration), and Joanna Garfinkel (dramaturge) Pants will premiere in 2023.

Performance History

Dancing on the Edge Festival July 2023 work in progress showing
Upcoming: October 2023 Firehall Arts Centre Vancouver Premiere

Project Details

Project created by: Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg

Key Collaborators:

Choreographer/Dancer: Tara Cheyenne
Co-Choreographer: Kate Franklin
Creative Collaboration: Cameron Mackenzie
Dramaturge: Joanna Garfinkel
Sound Design: Marc Stewart

Thank you to Josh Martin, Ted Littlemore, the many people
who contributed to the creation of Pants.

Audience: Some mature/foul language.

Length in minutes:

Space required: This work is adaptable to various theatre environments and potentially adaptable to certain outdoor performance venues.

Preparation required: 4 hours minimum

General technical requirements:

Marley/Dance Floor,
Audio Playback from Computer,
We can work with the house lighting plot with the addition of 2 specials

Availability: After October 2023 (World premiere at the Firehall Arts Centre Vancouver BC) 2023/24 and 2024/25 seasons

Number of performers on tour including choreographer: 1

Number of support staff on tour: 2-3

Community Engagement Activities

Tara Cheyenne Performance (as mentioned above) offers three types of workshop activities and circle discussions. Talking and Dancing, Cafecito, and Community Creation workshops typically engage Adult creatives in the community but have been offered to youth aged 13-18 in the past. The Circle Discussions are open to any interested and are typically scheduled after the performance to be able to continue the conversation initiated in the work and invite responses from the audience. In Pants, the subject the performer grapples with is the concept of gender, specifically as a middle-aged performer and a parent. The subject matter directly involves the 2SLGBTQIA+ community but is framed to as invite audiences outside of that community to still reflect on their own experience of gender.

Contact: Tara Cheyenne Performance, admin@taracheyenne.com

Agent/Manager: Hannah Meyers
General Manager, Tara Cheyenne Performance
admin@taracheyenne.com

Website: taracheyenne.com

Instagram: taracheyennetcp