Leah Stein

Leah Stein has been invited to present her new movement work, a site-specific film, as part of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival. Involving several Philadelphia-based movement artists, the film includes footage from Zoom recordings of their rehearsal process, extending throughout COVID.

This work explores each featured artist's response to the pandemic, collective uncertainty, and processing of heightened racial injustices, and serves as a time capsule of how a diverse group – folx who identify as intergenerational, BIPOC, women or gender non-conforming, and/or people with disabilities – came together during a time of crisis and deep sorrow and held space for one another. 

This grant will support the editing process of the film as well as equipment necessary for the outdoor screening.

Leah will produce Portraits, a series of performed duets in conjunction with the exhibition A MORE PERFECT UNION: Power, Sex, and Race in the Representation of Couples at the Woodmere Art Museum. This series of duets for mixed genders, ages, and races speaks to the complexities, passion, tension, confusion, and beauty of human connection. Leah will respond to the visual images within the exhibit and create an intimate look at couples, breaking expectations of race, gender, and orientation, using movement, sound, and text to catalyze the performers' and audiences' imaginations. The performance will also highlight the politics of representation and call attention to multiple understandings inspired by the visual artworks, the performers' responses, personal experiences, and artistic research.

Premiere of new work at the Arts Bank. Created in collaboration with poet Josey Foo. Support towards theatre rental and production expenses.

Premiere of new work at the Arts Bank. Created in collaboration with poet Josey Foo. Support towards theatre rental and production expenses.