FEAR: The Unspoken Geography

Program Notes:

“We think of PLACE as a static physical space, but in actuality, many places can occupy a single space due to the unique perceptions of Place to each individual based on memory, background and associations. The unspoken in geography is a place most women know well, yet many men don’t even know exists. This piece explores the sounds and feelings of being in that place.” —Christina Rusnak

1. Once I Was Innocent
2. Out There
3. Every[wo]man

I wanted to create a piece exploring the idea of women’s fear in the public sphere. Organizations such as the World Health Organization cite statistics (one out of every six women has been sexually assaulted ormolested); of course women know the reality is far greater. While geographic writings document the social ramifications of spatial control and the end result of separate spaces, I found no information describing what women experience daily, and the constant awareness of place, space and safety. I wanted to integrate memory and associations as well as sound and feelings. I also recorded an assortment of sounds associated with places of vulnerability, for instance where assaults occur, taking them as sound motives and inter-relate them to create the piece. This piece has been performed with dancers moving in and out of lit spaces, and as a stand-alone work as an installation with visual works.