Agent Orange — a defoliant used during the Vietnam War was manufactured byDow Chemical Company and Monsanto Corporation for use by the US Military. It was shipped to Vietnam in orange striped containers and thus the chemical was branded “Agent Orange.” The chemical was highly dangerous and was found in some locations to be hundreds of times greater than levels considered safe by the US EPA. It has been reported that as many as 3 million Vietnamese have been affected by Agent Orange. According to some sources, it still impacts the people of Vietnam. It also has affected Veterans of the US Military and the Vietnamese Military. Read more…
A Reading & Reception
March 6, 2014
Thursday, 6-9pm
Social Room, VCMC
Carol Wilder’s illumination Crossing the Street in Hanoi enriches us on every page with its seductive mix of storytelling, philosophy and insights into both Vietnam and the United States. Wilder’s crowning achievement, and the reason for her book to attract a wide audience, is that once and for all she unifies the three designations of Vietnam: the war, the era, and finally the county itself.”
– Peter Davis, director, Academy Award-wining Vietnam documentary Hearts and Minds
CounterPULSE’s Artist Residency
Commissioning Program Presents:
Krista DeNio’s the CONTACT project
March 14-15, FRI-SAT, 8PM, 2014
March 20-23, Thursday-Saturday, 8PM, Sunday 3PM
1310 Mission Street @9th Street
The CONTACT project is a contemporary performance training and development model, bringing together mixed ensembles of veterans of war and military service with non-veteran civilians, to co-create an audience-interactive performance installation.
Acknowledging the societal divide between veterans and the rest of the civilian population, CONTACT asks us to consider our relationships with territory, survival, violence, trauma and our real and perceived needs as individuals and communities. What do we have in common? Where do we differ? What can we learn from our different, but connected histories? Investigating our individual, daily realities, personal histories and [connection to/disconnect from] war, we begin to trace patterns in relationship with our communities, and the larger global events. One to one relationship building, in the context of larger group performative sharing [performers and audience] becomes an intimate, global experience.
Visit Krista DeNio‘s artist page for blogs about the creation of their work.
Performances will be a double bill with Charya Burt’s Silenced, which tells the story of Cambodian pop star Ros Serey Sothea, whose life was cut short by genocide.
Special Engagements:
Friday, March 14 (Opening night): Post-Show Audience Q & A
Thursday, March 20: Pay-What-You-Can-Night!
Friday March 21: Post-Show Panel Discussion “Before and After War”
Susan Maxwell – PTSD clinical psychologist
Misty Snyder – Veteran and performer
Khatharya Um – Professor of Asian American Studies, UC Berkeley
Thida Buth Mam – Survivor of the Khmer Rouge genocide
Sunday, March 23: 3pm – Matinee Performance!
the CONTACT project Features: Daniel Bear Davis (Assistant Director), Sonia Decker, Katarina Eriksson, Stephen Funk, Remi Frazier, Hope Hutman (InterMedia Design), Daniel Lippel, Bill McQueen, Utam Moses, Susan Pfeffer, Misty Snyder, and Tina Taylor.
March 29, 2014
Saturday, 8-10pm
Main Studio
Veterans Community Media Center
1720 Market Street San Francisco @ Gough Get Tickets: Eventbrites
Real Live Comedians Jason Mack, Matt Casey, Iris Benson, show announcer Remi Barron, and more of the Bay Areas finest comedians performing for your pleasure at the Veterans Community Media Center in San Francisco. Show will be filmed for a local tv/webcast project. Seating is limited. Refreshments will be refreshing you.
Only Two Days The first ever pop-up GI Coffeehouse’s on its West Coast GI Coffeehouse Tour rolling up California into San Francisco. Discussions/Workshops for veterans and civilians Entertainment, a Poster exhibit, Dancing on Friday night! and plenty of food and COFFEE!
Join us in activities and workshops you find enticing.
All day: GI Rights Counseling • Informational tabling • Coffee & snacks •
Circulate the flyers below.
Veterans Community Media Center of San Francisco 