About this project
Thank you for being here! I aim to create a new multidisciplinary circus act that blends aerial hoop, flexibility acrobatics, and a 4.5' wide, 12" tall Petri dish filled with salt water. Yeehaw!
This act is about creation, both literally and as a metaphor, portraying the murky, amoebic beginnings of a living organism as well as a thought, idea, or belief. The structure of the human-sized Petri dish and the 80-100 gallons of water it will take to fill it are intended to illustrate the liquid origins of life, as well as the unclear, underwater fog that accompanies a half-formed idea or belief (including those frightening ideas or beliefs we wish would stay underwater without emerging into the light).
What I wish to evoke in my audience is a deep-seeded connection between the spectacle I create for them and their own battles and victories. I wish to recall for them the visceral sense of something beginning in them that comes to fruition after much toil, as well as the literal visual of the grotesquely beautiful beginnings of a living creature.
To accomplish this, I have looked for one year exactly to find a vendor able to build this structure (the Petri dish) safely so that is is water-tight, clear acrylic, and strong while being as light-weight as possible. I have finally found such a vendor, after submitting this sketch to many, many companies: http://www.madamerex.com/petri.html
I plan to begin this act within this watery tank, and end it in the air on an aerial hoop. Accompanied by transcendent music that supports rather than distracts from the story, and a few well-placed lights, I believe this act will succeed in its undertaking. I also plan to get the front row a little damp (and maybe even the back row!).
What the funds are needed for (besides the structure itself) is a drainage system, a heating element, a sturdy wheeled platform for transport, a lid for the structure, and costuming supplies. This project is a year underway as far as the choreography, skills, and vision are concerned. To complete it I just need the details of the materials!
I have proposed this act to the 2012 Moisture Festival coming up this spring, the largest interdisciplinary performing arts expose in the Pacific Northwest!
This act will also be performed in association with my home away from home, Emerald City Trapeze Arts, where all choreography for this act was dreamed up and practiced over and over. Emerald City Trapeze Arts hosts a fully equipped stage, an indoor flying rig, and many performers and artists who make their living with their art.
Thank you so much for reading! If you are willing and able to donate to this act, your contribution of any amount is deeply appreciated! If you wish to help but are unable to contribute, please consider passing this link on to one other person that might be interested in helping to create this act. Thank you again, and have an awesome day.
To air, to water, to beginnings!
FAQ
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Funding Successful
This project successfully raised its funding goal on February 29.
Pledge $5 or more Pledge $5 or more
Receive a huge hug whenever I see you, a hearty thanks on Facebook and on the MadameRex.com website, and a link to the blooper reel of this video.
Pledge $10 or more Pledge $10 or more
Receive heartfelt public gratitude, the blooper reel link, and a shiny Madame Rex postcard to illustrate how much I heart your help.
Pledge $25 or more Pledge $25 or more
Get all of the above, a copy of my top-secret gumbo recipe as taught to me by my Louisiana stepmama (trust me, it's totally awesome), and an invite to the debut of this act. Veggie option available. For the gumbo, not the invitation.
Pledge $40 or more Pledge $40 or more
Get all the goodies! Including public gratitude, blooper reel link, postcard, recipe, invite, and a DVD of this act being performed live.
Pledge $75 or more Pledge $75 or more
Get all of the above, and join me for a free group aerial conditioning class at Emerald City Trapeze Arts! Subject to availability; please be in Seattle or passing through, we'd love to have you!
Pledge $100 or more Pledge $100 or more
Receive the public smooches, postcard, blooper reel link, recipe, invite to the show, the DVD, and a free group aerial conditioning class for you and a friend, so you can share the sweat with another! OR receive a 1-hour private session with me on strengthening, flexibility, aerial hoop, or aerial fabric. Subject to availability; please be in Seattle or passing through. Also, your name will be lovingly placed on a list of premium donors to the arts on my website, and any subsequent programs for this act.
Pledge $150 or more Pledge $150 or more
Get the public thanks, blooper reel link, recipe, postcard, invite to the show, and the DVD of this act being performed live. Plus, I will improvise an aerial hoop solo to your favorite song. Yes, any song will do, as long as it's less than 5 minutes long. Also, your name will be immortalized on the list of premium donors.
Pledge $200 or more Pledge $200 or more
Get public hugs on the website, your name on the list of premium donors, the postcard, blooper reel link, recipe, invite, DVD of this act being performed live, and lunch for two at the fabulous Pink Door Restaurant in downtown Seattle! Compliments of La Padrona Jacquelina Di Roberto! Muah Jackie!
Pledge $500 or more Pledge $500 or more
Donate $500 or more and get on the list of premium donors, public gratitude, postcard, recipe, invite to the show, DVD, an improvised performance on hoop to your favorite song, a 1-hour private class in stretching, strengthening, or aerial hoop or fabric, and I will make you a batch of my famous gumbo and either drop if off ready to heat up, or send it to you on dry ice! Also, if you can make it to the show get a photo op with me after the show! You can even get right inside the Petri dish if you don't mind getting wet...
Pledge $1,000 or more Pledge $1,000 or more
Heaven's sakes, this donation will get you public gratis, your name on the list of premium donors, a DVD of this act as well as an improvised performance on hoop to your favorite song, the blooper reel link and the recipe, the postcard, a shiny autographed photograph of this act being performed live, a private class with me (or with a friend if you prefer), and please join me with a friend using your two free tickets to see this act live, plus a photo op with me afterwards! Yes, you are welcome to get into the Petri dish. You can even wear my costume if you like...it will be wet but you can wear it!
Project By
Connected as Rachel Strickland (994 friends)
Classically trained in ballet since the age of three, Rachel is a ballerina turned aerialist and innovative variety performer. Modern, belly dance, and lyrical jazz make up some of her versatile background, as well as four years of aerial acrobatic training at the Circus Center of San Francisco and Emerald City Trapeze Arts in Seattle. Rachel’s cross training gives her the ability to deliver a wide range of movements from lithe and ethereal to earthy and visceral.
Rich, extravagant movements and strong, multifaceted technique are her trademarks. Captivating audiences with an eloquent musculature and a capacity to deliver roles from comedy to mystery, she is based out of Seattle, Washington.
