Absence by Christina J Swanson at Pittsburgh Fringe Festival

A woman awakens to the shocking reality that she can no longer speak. She struggles to continue her daily life, struggling to be heard, grappling with crumbling personal relationships and self-image. Through recorded sound and movement, she explores who she is in a body she can no longer trust. It was inspired by a period of 3 months in which the artist (a trained opera singer) was unable to speak or sing. Combining original recorded sound and improvised movement, she explores identity and the effects of silence. Every piece of recorded text featured was taken from real conversations she had during this period, written on iPhone notes, her method of communication.

About the Performer:
Soprano Christina Swanson is a singer, actor, and performance artist based in Detroit. Swanson received her Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Michigan in 2016. Recent performance credits include L’Enfant et les sortilèges (Princess, Owl) and Les Mamelles de Tirésias (Quartet Soprano, Gendarme) with Opera MODO and the soprano soloist in Mozart’s Requiem with Thistle Rose Arts Academy. Her original performance art has been seen in the Detroit Fringe Forward Festival, WIP Fest, and will be seen internationally this season. She is a member of the band “The Strange” whose cabaret piece, “Voices of the Carousel” has been featured on WDET’s Essential Music and has been performed at Planet Ant Theater. In her own music and performance art, Swanson explores themes of physical identity through original movement and sound. Swanson also works as a private teacher and is a staff singer at Christ Church Detroit.