same as sister residency
Dancemakers supported Same As Sister (S.A.S) in a month-long development residency at the Dance Arts Institute in October 2023.
Upstairs, In Our Bedroom is an interdisciplinary performance that places Same As Sister’s experiences as female identical twins of color next to the real-life story of outsider authors June & Jennifer Gibbons (a.k.a. The Silent Twins). Utilizing dance, text, mobile VR technology, and puppetry they will reveal the dual struggles to be recognized as individuals within a pairing and within a racist and patriarchal society.
Photo by Gillian Mapp
[Image description: Hilary and Briana embrace in a grey dance studio, Hilary’s knees are bent and Briana seems to support her weight]
Project Team:
Choreographed and Performed by: Same As Sister/Briana Brown-Tipley + Hilary Brown-Istrefi in collaboration with Peggy Piacenza
Dramaturgy by: Susan Mar Landau
VR Specialist: Lora Appel
Disability Arts Advisor: Rachel da Silveira Gorman
Upstairs, In Our Bedroom is being commissioned and developed through the HERE Artist Residency Program (HARP), NYC, with additional support from Dancemakers (Toronto). The project was developed in part during a 2022-2023 Plug-N-Play Residency at Toronto Dance Theatre.
Winter Workshops at Workman Arts
by Same As Sister
[Image Description: A group portrait of Same As Sister and co-facilitator Rachel da Silveira Gorman with the intensive’s BIPOC participants. They are all smiling while seated in two rows of chairs in CAMH Auditorium.]
Same As Sister completed a 4-day choreographic intensive, Reimagining Madness through Reenactment, part of Workman Arts' 2024 Winter Course Catalogue. The intensive was co-facilitated by interdisciplinary performance collective, Same As Sister (S.A.S.)/Briana Brown-Tipley + Hilary Brown-Istrefi and disability arts advisor, Rachel da Silveira Gorman to explore the personal and expansive intersections of race, madness, and choreography through the framework of reenactment. Participants learnt material from S.A.S.'s larger body of work covering these themes, in addition to crafting their own movement phrases inspired by sources including popular television and cinema.
[Image Description: In CAMH Auditorium, co-facilitator Rachel da Silveira Gorman is seated on a cushion within a circle of chairs, mats, and blankets. There is tiered seating to the left and a portable stage to the right.]
Dancemakers would like to thank the wonderful team at Workman Arts and the courageous participants for delving into some profound explorations!
same as sister artist talk
hosted by rendezvous with madness
On Saturday October 28th at 5pm, Same As Sister (S.A.S.)/Briana Brown-Tipley + Hilary Brown-Istrefi and York University’s 3Dance research team – VR advisor Lora Appel & disability arts advisor Rachel da Silveira Gorman, hosted an open conversation and demonstration about their project in development, Upstairs, In Our Bedroom.
Photo By Henry Chan
[Image description: Four people standing in pairs, hold microphones mid speech. They stand behind a table and in front of a projector screen bearing the title "Same As Sister (S.A.S.) & 2Dance: Bridging Dimensions of Dance Performance and Mental Health through Virtual Reality. To their right is an ASL interpreter with red hair and a yellow sweater translating their speech]
SAS and 3Dance led the audience through their individual and joint artistic histories, culminating with the findings of their residency with Dancemakers.
Audience members were invited to test the developed Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) through their own devices and available VR headsets.
Genelle Levy from CBC Arts spoke to Same As Sister ahead of their artist talk about the personal and historical context of their work.
[Image Description: Screenshot from CBC Arts article titled “The twin sisters bringing the tragic story of the ‘Silent Twins’ to the stage” by Genelle Levy, featuring a picture of Same As Sister who are biracial black and white twin sisters, spotlighted from above against a black backdrop] Photo by Ian Douglas
Same As Sister will continue to research and develop Upstairs, In Our Bedroom with HERE Artist Residency Program (HARP) NYC, performing in 2025. We invite you to keep up with their journey!
Banner Photo: Same As Sister developing Upstairs, In Our Bedroom during Dancemakers Residency at DAI/ Photo by Gillian Mapp