The Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina 2018
To celebrate ten years of audacious upending, we paid homage to the people, places, and parks that have been a part of our journey. In 2018 we toured An Imaginists’ Odyssey. President Corn’s wife, Bolognia Corn, is trying to get her new play about bullying performed in lovely wine country, but the Broadway by Bicycle theater troupe she hired to perform her show …doesn’t exist. She’s mistakenly hired the Imaginists! Inspired in equal parts by Homer’s Odyssey, today’s headlines, tomorrow’s dreams and our own ten year journey of free bilingual bicycle-powered theater, An Imaginists’ Odyssey asks: What is home? How do we get there? Our 2018 tour was supported by the NEA, Creative Sonoma, City of Santa Rosa, and generous individual donors.
The Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina 2017
In 2017 we toured an original adaptation of Quiroga's Jaun Darien called Stop That Show, a sly mash up of the classic story by Horacio Quiroga, The Emperor's New Clothes, Cinderella, weekly headlines and anything else we could throw in the bike trailers! The Imaginists’ 9th annual free bilingual, bicycle-powered summer tour was supported by the California Arts Council, Creative Sonoma, City of Santa Rosa, and generous individual donors.
The Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina 2016
In 2016 we toured El Show el Arte es Medicina, featuring the Coast Miwok stories from How a Mountain was Made by Greg Sarris, and an original adaptation of Calderon's Life is a dream. Our 2016 tour was supported by California Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Creative Sonoma, City of Santa Rosa, and generous individual donors. Our Community Partners were Redwood Empire Food Bank, Migrant Education Sonoma County, and the Sonoma County Book Mobile.
The Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina 2015
In 2015 we toured El Show el Arte es Medicina, featuring the poetry of Federico García Lorca and Francisco Alarcón, and an original adaptation of Lorca's The Butterfly's Evil Spell/ El Maleficio de la Mariposa. Our 2015 tour was supported by California Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Creative Sonoma, City of Santa Rosa, and generous individual donors. Our Community Partners were Redwood Empire Food Bank, Migrant Education Sonoma County, and the Sonoma County Book Mobile.
The Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina 2014
In 2014 we toured two shows in repertory by bicycle: our iconic Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina traveled to Redwood Empire Food Bank Summer Lunch sites during the week and an original adaptation of A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings/ Un señor muy viejo con unas alas enormes by Gabriel García Márquez toured to eight Santa Rosa city parks on weekends. Our 2014 tour was funded in part by the Community Foundation Sonoma County- Small Grants for the Arts, City of Santa Rosa, and was sponsored by Alavardo St. Bakery.
FREE! BILINGUAL! BICYCLE-POWERED! GRATIS! VIAJES POR BICICLETA! BILINGÜE!
The Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina 2013
In 2013, funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, we expanded our bicycle tour to include a second show. Federico García Lorca's The Billy-Club Puppets/ Los titeres de cachiporra toured in repertory with our 5th annual El Show el Arte es Medicina/ The Art is Medicine Show featuring the poetry of Lorca, Neruda, and Chericián.
FREE! BILINGUAL! BICYCLE-POWERED! GRATIS! VIAJES POR BICICLETA! BILINGÜE!
2009-2012
The Art is Medicine Show/ El Show el Arte es Medicina
In 2009, at the height of the national recession, we had the idea to take theater out of the theater and to perform in public parks for free. Inspired by the Federal Theater Project of the 30's we envisioned a traveling show that would spread the medicine of poetry in Spanish and English by bicycle . Thanks to a CA$H grant from Theatre Bay Area we were able to conceive and build the show, pay performers, and assemble a caravan of bikes that could carry it all . We toured the show to city parks in Santa Rosa. In 2010 we began a partnership with Redwood Empire Food Bank, touring the medicine show to a number of their Summer Lunch sites throughout the city.
The Art is Medicine Show featured in American Theatre Magazine
The Imaginists
461 Sebastopol Avenue | Santa Rosa | CA | 95401 | info@theimaginists.org | (707) 528-7554