Join us for the premiere of Olivia C. Davies’ Straight, No Chaser on 17-19 September at ODD Box (2 Daly Avenue, Ottawa) Presented by Ottawa Dance Directive and supported by the National Arts Centre, Straight, No Chaser weaves together dance, theatre, and storytelling.
This solo show follows River, a former party girl with mixed heritage and shady past, as she hosts a kitchen party celebration to mark her transformation into motherhood. Through a series of scenes that jump across time and place, River shares what it was like growing up adopted and dispossessed of the knowledge of her own family’s matriarchal lineage, navigating coming of age in the rave days of the late 90s, and eventually confronting the intergenerational traumas passed down to her.
Written and performed by choreographer, Olivia C. Davies, this biomyth monodrama reflects the creator’s own lived experiences, and asks how does a mother pass down lessons she was never taught? How does she provide her unborn child with answers to questions she had growing up even as she continues to search for them herself? How do we right the wrongs of our past and make a better future for the seven generations who will come after us?
Directed by Diane Roberts
Sound Design/Composition by Olivia Shortt
Video and Projection Design by Andy Moro
Lighting Design by Graham Price and Sephora N’Kosi
Costume Design by Sarah Uwadiae
Set Design by Echo Zhou
Stage Management by Laura Wheeler
Learn more about the show and get your tickets here.
Image: Olivia C. Davies in Straight, No Chaser. Photo by Ben Kissner