2022 was a transformative year of re-emergence for Unit Souzou. After 2 years of pausing and rescheduling due to pandemic-related disruptions, it felt beyond amazing to connect with many of you in-person again. 

The first half of 2022 was dedicated to the premiere of Constant State of Otherness. At long last, we debuted our multi-layered theater work weaving taiko, dance, song and personal story to explore the universal experiences of othering and alienation. Our 6-person ensemble, Ian Berve, David Wells, Michelle Fujii, Kristy Oshiro, Toru Watanabe, and Vicky Zhang, alongside our Company Manager, Sarah Ayako,  journeyed through so much together, driven by our belief in this project, in each other, and in the stories we wanted to tell together.

Recognizing space and place was fundamental to this work, and we developed unique experiences responsive to each performance location. In Helena, MT at The Myrna Loy, we hosted a ‘reunion’ community meal to reconnect with folks who had shared otherness stories back in 2019. In Portland, OR, we facilitated an AANHPI space to process identity, belonging and safety. At Caldera Arts, the show blossomed into a weekend festival, vibrant with outdoor site-specific performances and hands-on workshops. We also guided the audience on a sacred rhythmic walk through lands burned by wildfire, playing music and dancing for the land and its ancestors. 

During the summer, we got out and about. Toru and Michelle performed with taiko mentors, Russel Baba and Jeanne Mercer, in a 3-day improvisational concert in Mt. Shasta, CA. They taught taiko workshops at Connect 2022 in Washington, DC and Toronto Taiko Festival in Canada. Michelle collaborated with Karen Young in Boston, MA for her project, Taiko and the Parks, centering the elders of Boston, the art of taiko, and connection to indigenous landwaters in lesser known green spaces. 

This Fall, we finally returned back to school. Toru and Michelle have been teaching taiko residencies full-time in elementary schools throughout the Portland metro region empowering students to feel pride and strength through the power of the drum.

We end this year overflowing with deep gratitude to all you – collaborators, presenters, audience members, and dear friends – who gave your support and helped manifest our work into its many vibrant and diverse forms. 

Looking forward to another creative year in 2023! 

As our communities emerge to negotiate a world changed, we at Unit Souzou are continuing to shift and flow in our work. We have been very active, pivoting our projects and seeding new explorations.

First we are thrilled to share some exciting news. Our Co-Director Michelle Fujii is one of two recipients of the prestigious Lilla Jewel Award, which recognizes Oregon-based artists who advance a social change message through their work. We are grateful to Seeding Justice (formerly MRG Foundation) and the award committee for this honor.

Our major project, Constant State of Otherness, continues to evolve. Three years of community engagement and creative development had originally been scheduled to culminate in a series of theatrical performances across the country in May 2020. The pandemic spurred us to reimagine and reground the work in response to the many timely and relevant happenings in our world. The resulting work includes a new series of Otherness Video Diaries, ongoing content development, and the debut of this theatrical production in Spring 2022. We’ve been honored to secure numerous grants for this work, most recently from noteworthy performing arts funders MAP Fund and are National Theatre Project grant finalists. What is the rhythm of our safety? This question is at the heart of Unit Souzou’s newest project, RHYTHM: Walking to the Heartbeat of our Community, which explores pedestrian safety in East Portland. RHYTHM was originally scheduled for early 2021, but was put on pause due to COVID-19 shutdowns. With the rise of Anti-Asian violence, the impacts of COVID, and historic disinvestment in East Portland, safety in public is urgent and multilayered. We are eager to begin collaborating with community members and organizations to devise creative experiences. Here are two opportunities to get involved:

We would like to hear YOUR stories and experiences!
CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS

East Portland Neighborhood Cohort We are seeking eight community members with strong connections to East Portland to form a Neighborhood Cohort, which will work together over the course of three months, August – October 2021, over Zoom (with the possibility of gathering in-person at a physically distanced outdoor space) to document this unique time and explore how our communities are experiencing and imagining safety. Unit Souzou will facilitate cohort activities and conversations that spark remembrance, observation, and investigation. Guest facilitators will also be invited to provide tools in bystander intervention, processing trauma, and self-defense. 

Cohort member stories will also be collected and organized into an atlas, documenting experiences of safety/lack of safety over the past year and ideas for the future. 

Apply to participate by filling out this short form by Wed, Aug 4th.

Community Interviews We will also be interviewing community members who have a strong current or past connection to the Jade District in East Portland including those who have lived, worked or gone to school in the neighborhood now or in the past. Interviews will be recorded and to create a quilt of voices, faces and stories, which will be featured in a public event in fall 2021.

Interviews are 45 – 60 minute by Zoom or phone with Unit Souzou and a compensation of a $40 gift certificate to a Jade District business will be provided.

Interview Interest Form

We are so grateful for your continued support and interest in our work. Stay tuned as we continue to evolve!

What is the rhythm of our safety? 
This question is at the heart of Unit Souzou’s newest project, RHYTHM: Walking to the Heartbeat of our Community, which explores pedestrian safety in East Portland.

RHYTHM emerged from the relationship and collaboration between Michelle Fujii from Unit Souzou and Candace Kita from APANO, an advocacy and community/cultural development organization uniting Asians and Pacific Islanders in Oregon. APANO has participated in projects to increase pedestrian safety in East Portland where they are based. They recognized there was much more work to do, and that cultural arts was a strong way to engage communities. Michelle connected the drum to the experience of moving through the streets: the energy, movement and rhythms.

Over the course of 2021, Unit Souzou is collaborating with community members and organizations to devise a series of creative experiences addressing pedestrian safety in East Portland. With the rise of Anti-Asian violence, the impacts of COVID, and historic disinvestment in East Portland, safety in public is urgent and multilayered.

As COVID-19 restrictions relax, vaccinations roll-out and the weather warms, many Portlanders are moving through shared public spaces with new and ongoing concerns. RHYTHM will document this unique time and share how our communities are imagining their safety as a result of their experiences. 

We would like to hear YOUR stories and experiences!
CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS

COMMUNITY INTERVIEWS

We will be interviewing community members who have a strong current or past connection to the Jade District in East Portland including those who have lived, worked or gone to school in the neighborhood now or in the past. Interviews will be recorded and to create a quilt of voices, faces and stories, which will be featured in a public event in fall 2021.
Interviews are 45 – 60 minute by Zoom or phone with Unit Souzou and a compensation of a $40 gift certificate to a Jade District business will be provided.

Learn more about the Community Interviews HERE – Sign up to participate

EAST PORTLAND NEIGHBORHOOD COHORT

We are also seeking eight community members with strong connections to East Portland to form a Neighborhood Cohort, which will work together over the course of three months, August – October 2021, over Zoom (with the possibility of gathering in-person at a physically distanced outdoor space) to document this unique time and explore how our communities are experiencing and imagining safety. Unit Souzou will facilitate cohort activities and conversations that spark remembrance, observation, and investigation. Guest facilitators will also be invited to provide tools in bystander intervention, processing trauma, and self-defense. Cohort member stories will also be collected and organized into an atlas, documenting experiences of safety/lack of safety over the past year and ideas for the future.

Cohort members should expect to spend 25-30 hours of time on the project over the course of 3 months (August – October, 2021) and will be compensated $1,000, paid in three installments.

Learn more about the East Portland Neighborhood Cohort HERE – Apply by Wednesday, August 4th

To our community – we hope you, your families, and loved ones are staying safe and healthy during these truly incredible times. This week in particular has touched us all as we navigate unprecedented victories and attacks on our nation’s democracy. All of us – as Unit Souzou and each of us personally – have both been working tirelessly and taking care in this time of COVID-19, racial justice uprisings, and political intensity.

Throughout 2020, we pivoted and flowed. We found ourselves immersed in generative response, presenting virtual performances Otherness: Togetherness, with our fellow artists Joe Kye and Horatio Law, and a program with our partners at DancePlace. In the summer, we organized the taiko community in an anti-racism virtual practice, Reimagining a New World, and we created new video works of Sayonara Mata Ashita and Ancestral Calling from our ‘postponed’ project, Constant State of Otherness.

As 2021 emerges, we begin with breath and gratitude, and are thankful that we have been able to maintain our work at a time when performance artists and venues are suffering greatly due to the pandemic. In addition to relief funds from the Oregon Cultural Trust and a Small Business Administration PPP loan, which has helped Unit Souzou to survive these past months, the end of 2020 brought bounty as we move into a new year. Unit Souzou received grants from the PDX-CARES Funding through the Portland Parks & Recreation’s BIPOC Artist Led Performance grant and RACC’s Capturing the Moment grant. We also received funding from Multnomah County Cultural Commission and National Performance Network to evolve Constant of Otherness into a video diary project. And Michelle was awarded an Oregon Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship which recognizes “outstanding talent, demonstrated ability and commitment to the creation of new work” as well as a fellowship with the Jubilation Foundation.

We are truly grateful to you, our community for your support and solidarity this past year, and look forward to staying in touch with you as we take on 2021.

For the past 3 years, we have been creating a show called Constant State of Otherness. Many plans have had to shift due to COVID-19, and unfortunately, our May debut tour has been postponed. However, our wonderful commissioners and presenting organizations are dedicated to making this show happen at a later date. Stay tuned for updates.

With the world around all of us continuing to shift, normal will eventually become something very different. We have no idea what may happen or when, but we are focusing on what we can do now – staying open, flexible, and adaptable to what may come, and using this time to expand the scope of the project and reflect on what is happening now. 

As we navigate our own story through this time, we are fortunate because our art is such a powerful way for us to reflect. And we want to use our creative practice to hear and amplify your stories, too. For the past 3 years, we have been deep in reflecting on the concept of otherness: its impacts, but also its universality. Throughout our creative process, we have heard from many communities and their stories of isolation and displacement that come from a sense of not fitting in. Several words were repeated in our conversations: displacement, loneliness, belonging, home, distancing, isolation. Given what we are all going through during this pandemic, these themes feel so timely and relevant. 

What are you experiencing? 
During this time of necessary social distancing, how has otherness impacted you? 
What feelings are you experiencing: loneliness, displacement, isolation, fear, loss of identity 
How are you finding ways to respond or to heal, to be resilient and to connect? 
How do you see individuals, our communities, society, or the earth responding to these? 

We want to hear from you! Share with us how these themes resonate with you through any creative medium: text, poetry, drawings, sound, movement, etc. Please submit your stories via this Google form. We will be accepting stories on a rolling-basis, but you are encouraged to submit by Friday, May 8th for the possibility to be included in Unit Souzou’s May 16th Dance Place Virtual Presentation. 

We are moving forward with our Otherness: Togetherness show. However, in light of public health concerns, we are changing the format to a LIVE STREAM for one showing which will be accessible from anywhere in the world. We hope this may provide more access to more people. 

Given the theme of our show and it’s timeliness, we are committed to providing a creative space for us to gather, even virtually, to combat the fear and otherness that comes from isolation. We are currently witnessing fear-based xenophobia/racism in our community. We are hearing stories of how Asians in everyday spaces are getting accosted or yelled at for being Asian, and how Asian businesses are suffering. Our show’s topic on otherness feels increasingly relevant and urgent. We are digging deeper to share and celebrate being Asian in America. 

Join us for 
Otherness: Togetherness – A LIVE STREAMING EVENT
Saturday, March 21st 7:00 pm Pacific Time
https://livestream.com/unitsouzou/togetherness
Free admission; Donations of $10-30 appreciated

Unit Souzou ensemble will come together for the first time with installation artist Horatio Law and violinist-looper, Joe Kye in Otherness: Togetherness, a celebratory showcase of these Asian American artists. The program will highlight each artist’s distinct voice and creative approach, and will also show commonalities amongst their experiences – of identity, longing, otherness, displacement – melding together into a cohesive art experience. Additionally, as the current global pandemic ensues, the artists are committed to creating a brave and inclusive space for the program that will be engaging and relevant, building on artistic strengths and also pushing creative boundaries.

“By coming together in this way – as Chinese, Korean, and Japanese rooted artists – we want to amplify our diverse perspectives of what it means to be Asian in America. We embrace the notion of being ‘Asian American,’ but also push boundaries of stereotype, labels, and expectations,” says Michelle Fujii.

The themes in Otherness: Togetherness are timely. When forces seem to be pulling communities apart, dividing us through racism, xenophobia, classism and so many other -isms, these artists are creating work that bridges and engages audiences to grapple with all of our inner struggles to be both human and humane. Especially during this moment in time – the uncertainty of public health, politics, climate, and the economy – being in community can combat the loneliness and despair of isolation. 

The program uplifts three ambitious artistic innovators whose approach navigate both historical and contemporary cultural lenses. Bringing their own styles – including Joe Kye’s indie-rock, jazz, classical, and pop sound using digital effects and looping and excerpts from other projects including Unit Souzou’s new taiko and movement performance work, Constant State of Otherness, and Horatio Law’s DACA Lounge installation, inspired by the plight and courage of DACA students, inviting all of us to dream in solidarity.  O

A special message from Unit Souzou:

We are moving forward with our OTHERNESS: TOGETHERNESS show. However, in light of public health concerns, we are changing the format to a LIVESTREAM for one showing. You will be able to experience the performance from the safety of your respective homes, and we will not be allowing in-person admission to the performance space. More detailed information will be shared shortly. 

Given the theme of our show and its timeliness, we are committed to providing a creative space for us to gather, even virtually, to combat the fear and otherness that comes from isolation. We are currently witnessing fear-based xenophobia/racism in our community. We are hearing stories of how Asians in everyday spaces are getting accosted or yelled at for being Asian, and how Asian businesses are suffering. Our shows topic on otherness feels increasingly relevant and urgent. We are digging deeper to share and celebrate being Asian in America. 

If you purchased a ticket, a livestream performance may not have been what you anticipated. We are happy to refund the full ticket price, and will be sending out instructions very soon on how that can be processed. We would also appreciate the opportunity for your ticket to become a donation to support us in the unavoidable expenses that we are facing with all these last minute changes.

In addition to supporting our work, we hope that you can support people of Chinese and Asian descent who are facing stigma in their communities, and particularly small businesses. Here is a list of places recommended by APANO (https://www.apano.org/blog/2020/02/27/). We also recommend Master Kong, Toru’s favorite noodle place and Michelle’s #1 favorite restaurant, Swiss Hibiscus.

We will be in touch again very soon.
Please be healthy and take care,
Michelle Fujii, Unit Souzou Co-Director

How our themes inspired our work

At the beginning of each year, we set our intentions by naming themes that will light our way. This year’s intentions were especially important and foundational as we embarked on a most ambitious course to devise our new theatrical production, Constant State of Otherness.

Spark. This year, a major spark was ignited as we launched the Otherness project, which is both a new full-length performance work which we are still devising, but also an ambitious project that is stretching us in new ways to create within a deep community engagement process. Through solid partnerships providing financial and outreach support, our ensemble had invaluable space and time to work with communities across the country and also engage in a thought-provoking development process.

Vulnerability. The premise of the Otherness project is rooted in building empathy through listening, sharing our stories and unique challenges. Unlocking these stories in our community and in ourselves requires a willingness to be vulnerable, to ask and answer questions that isn’t always easy or comfortable. 

Catalyze. As we deepened our commitment to engaging communities in our creative process, we embarked on a new level of understanding of the role we can play in catalyzing these connections. Whether it was connecting with Philadelphia API communities through workshops with our partners at Asian Arts Initiative, or community members in Helena, MT with our partners at The Myrna Loy, we have been inspired by the power of bringing people together for conversation, story sharing, and discovery. 

What we learned about otherness during our creative residencies

This year has been so full and enriching for Unit Souzou as we’ve dedicated ourselves to creating our new theatrical work, Constant State of Otherness. We want to share a snapshot of some of our experiences during creative artist residencies hosted by our partners.

In September, our professional ensemble journeyed to Helena, MT, where we were hosted by our co-commissioning partner, The Myrna Loy. A highlight of our time in Montana was meeting several inspiring members of the community, who shared stories of their life experiences deeply steeped in navigating otherness. 

One person we spoke with, Rob Bonnes, is currently introducing adaptive ice hockey (which we got to spend an afternoon trying out) to Helena through the Montana Independent Living Project. His was a story of constant otherness and intense questioning of self worth, and his fight to find his place in his community. Over time, his has also become a journey of vulnerability and resilience. He has found the value of sharing his story with others to provide solidarity for others who are struggling, and to give a new perspective to the things we take for granted and the ways we move through our lives. 

We were also honored to spend time with a number of other community members who generously shared their stories: Valerie Hellerman, who shared her experiences of working with refugee camps around the world; Moe Wosepka, who is dedicated to helping former inmates with their complex transitions to new lives; and students of the PAL high school with whom we explored taiko as a form of genuine and representative expression of otherness. The compassion and perseverance of the community inspired us to dig deeply into our own stories of otherness and find the meaningful connections through our differences.

Soon after a very formative time in Helena, we traveled to Caldera Arts in Sisters, OR, nestled amongst the gorgeous trees and lakes of the Deschutes National Forest. In a space so tied to nature, it was impossible not to find a connection with the earth, with each other, and with ourselves.  In this vast space, we found invaluable time to bring ourselves into our bodies so that we could feel and create from a vulnerable and authentic place. As we explored what otherness means to us, we found our own stories of family and community that shaped who we are and the burdens of what we represent in our multi-racial society. We are incredibly excited to return in January for further creative work, and in Spring for our Oregon debut performance.

We are grateful for the opportunities these residencies have provided. Through this deep immersion in building connections and listening to moving stories of otherness in the communities we’ve visited, we have developed exciting ideas and scenescapes for this new theatrical work. 

LOOKING AHEAD: CONSTANT STATE OF OTHERNESS DEBUT

2020 will be an electric year for Unit Souzou. After 3 years of deep, thoughtful creative process in conversation and practice, we will be debuting Constant State of Otherness throughout next year. We hope to see you!

February 1, 2020 Sisters, OR Work-in-Progress
Through Caldera’s Open Studios in partnership with the Deschutes County Library, we will share a work-in-progress of Constant State of Otherness as a culmination of our January creative residency. 

March 21-22, 2020 Portland, OR Otherness Collaborator Performance
Otherness: Togetherness will feature our collaborative work with Horatio Law, a Chinese American visual installation artist and Joe Kye, a Korean American violinist-looper coming together to share stories of experiences grappling with ideas of identity, home, otherness.

May 1, 2020 Helena, MT Debut Performance
Lead commissioner, The Myrna Loy, will present the premiere of the full-length theatrical production, Constant State of Otherness.

May 9-10, 2020 Washington, DC Tour Performance, Dance Place
May 13, 2020 Minneapolis, MN Tour Performance, Taiko Arts Midwest
June 6-7, 2020 Sisters, OR Tour Performance/2-day Festival, Caldera
Fall 2020 Philadelphia, PA dates tbd
Fall 2020 Portland, OR dates tbd 

Constant State of Otherness is a National Performance Network/Visual Artist Network (NPN/VAN) Creation & Development Fund Project co-commissioned by The Myrna Loy in partnership with Caldera Arts, Asian Arts Initiative, Dance Place, Risk Reward and NPN/VAN. The Creation & Development Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information: www.npn.org. Constant State of Otherness has received development support from the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Theatre Project and Regional Arts and Culture Council. 

LOOKING MORE AHEAD: EAST PORTLAND RHYTHM PROJECT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH APANO

Thanks to a seed funds from a prestigious Creative Heights grant from Oregon Community Foundation, we are excited to announce a new project we are developing in partnership with our friends and colleagues at APANO. Through a community-embedded 18-20 month, Unit Souzou will create RHYTHM: Walking to the Heartbeat of our Community, a series of experiences, conversations, workshops and performances centered around pedestrian safety in East Portland’s Jade District. This project, which will debut in 2021 seeks to develop lasting relationships, discover new narratives about this neighborhood, engage in direct conversations around safety to help build a stronger, more welcoming, and more resilient neighborhood, and spur ideas for how Unit Souzou’s approach to taiko and community-engaged creations embody placekeeping and positive community changes. Look forward to more information in the near future!

For the past three years, Unit Souzou has set inspirational words as themes for the year to bring intention and connection to our work.  In 2016, we were motivated by our goals of deepening, expanding, and contributing. In 2017, unprecedented changes in our country and communities spurred goals of braving, listening, and galvanizing. Last year our inspiration came from the multiple meaning of our name souzou – creation, imagination, and noisy.

In ruminating about how we want to focus our energies this coming year, we brought all members of our group together to dream with us. This word cloud represents the full collection of our group’s commitments. Of these, the following especially resonate as we delve into an ambitious new year in 2019:

Spark. We are devising new taiko frameworks and creating story-centered art. We will light up fresh approaches as we push the boundaries of our art forms to create innovative risk-taking, relevant, and accessible work that breaks boundaries of taiko and folk dance with sound shaped by form and movement, forging new traditions for our evolving communities.

Vulnerability. Creating new art work demands that we come from a place of empathy and sincere openness in order to fully hear and share diverse and universal stories. Through our creative process, we will be asking challenging questions in order to take new risks in our expression. Through our art, we will bring our honest conversations that are sometimes behind closed doors to the foreground as a process of deep inquiry in order to create a brave space for courageous discovery.

Catalyze. Using our art form as an accessible entry point, we have an opportunity to engage our broad communities – including our known friends and colleagues, but also new connections and communities – in deep conversations that we hope can open up minds and hearts. We invoke our communities to join us in this space of dialogue and sharing through creative experiences we will be offering throughout this year.