Audience-In-Residence (A-I-R)
Through the AUDIENCE-IN-RESIDENCE (A-I-R) program, a group of 15-30 participants attended five seasons of performances between 2014–2019. Some productions were created and produced by ANANDAM, others were curated from larger spheres of Toronto performance.
About a week after each event, we met for an informal dialogue in a casual environment and accessible space. The evening was dedicated to sharing our responses, questions and experiences.
Through collective research and reflection and
Developing a practice of curiosity
Conversation became a methodology
Cultivating discourse about dance
The A-I-R program is not about intellectualizing our responses to dance. Instead, it is about deepening the praxis of our sensorial experience and imaginaries for dance; rooted in thinking and talking with each other and artists about dance. This exploration of the phenomenological process for audiences honours the different kinds of attention we can practice together.
We continue to develop this program in multiple formats that cultivate diverse thinking, speaking and writing about the experience of live performance, dance, body, and audience that considers form, context and content.