Queer Futures Now: An Alien Play

Queeer Futures Now: An Alien Play

Description:

When four campers and their loved ones visit the Rio Chama in Northern New Mexico, they soon discover there is more to the great outdoors than peace and quiet. One by one, the campers go missing, leaving the others afraid and in need of answers. What they discover is more wild and unpredictable than they could have ever imagined.

A blend of sci-fi, thriller, adventure, and dance party, Queer Futures Now: An Alien Play follows four queer and trans youths on their journey to safety and shows the path to LGBTQIA+ paradise is closer than we think.

Queer Futures Now: An Alien Play is part of SQUINCH4Families, a multimedia, arts-centered curriculum developed by Health Equity Alliance of LGBTQ+ New Mexicans (HEAL Plus NM) to equip parents, family members, and caregivers with the skills and tools to listen, understand, support, and advocate for the LGBTQ+ youth they love.

Cast + Crew:

● Written by Allison Kenny + Danielle Simone

● Director: Lynn Johnson

● Assistant Director: Tatiana Isabel Gil

● Original Sound + Music: Jessie Lane

● Scenic Design: sherri crider + Haley Greenfeather

● Costume Design: Allison Saint

● Stage Manager: Lasha Kirker

● Producers: Alex Ross-Reed + Lyisa Jimenez

Featuring (in alphabetical order):

● Allison Kenny

● Bryan Avila-Fuentes

● Dalilah Naranjo

● Danielle Simone

● Jessie Lane

● Johnny Olesen

● Lynn Johnson

● Noe Field-Perkins

Sponsors + Partners:

Third Soul Soul Events

Event Schedule:

7:00 pm Doors open

7:15 pm Queer Futures Now Play opens

8:30 pm Community Reception: music, mingling, local community resources.

About the SQUINCH4Families Project

Health Equity Alliance for LGBTQ+ New Mexicans (HEAL Plus NM), in partnership with High Desert Playback (HDP), has developed SQUINCH4Families, a multimedia, arts-centered curriculum designed to equip parents, family members, and caregivers with the skills and tools to listen, understand, support, and advocate for the LGBTQ+ youth they love. At the heart of this project is an original play called Queer Futures Now: An Alien Play, written from the real-life stories of LGBTQ+ youth from across New Mexico.

SQUINCH stands for “Sharing Queer Understanding, Inclusion, Nonviolent Communication, and Health."

In the Spring of 2024, High Desert Playback traveled to rural and urban areas of New Mexico, hosting interactive story circles for LGBTQ+ youth ages 16-24. These story circles used playback theatre and other art forms to:

● Create belonging and facilitate trust and empathy

● Cultivate authentic connections between youth participants

● Celebrate and honor all the ways that queer joy manifests in our lives

From there, High Desert Playback artists conducted 15 in-depth interviews with a diverse range of youth where they asked them questions like:

● What has your gender and sexuality journey been like?

● Can you tell us about a time someone (a friend or adult ally) really showed up for you?

● What do you wish your parents and caregivers knew?

● What resources do they need to better understand your identity and make more safe

spaces for you?

The artists then compiled all of the stories and responses and synthesized the overall themes according to the young people:

1. Queer + Trans humans have a right to a peaceful existence and joy beyond imagination

2. It is 100% normal to be queer + trans. We are not aliens.

3. We are design thinkers. LGBTQ+ youth are building a world where ALL humans can

thrive safely in all our intersectional identities.

What resulted is an original 75-minute play that blends sci-fi, thriller, adventure, and dance party. Set on the banks of the Rio Chama in Northern New Mexico, the play follows four queer and trans youths on their journey to safety and shows the path to paradise is closer than we think.

About High Desert Playback

High Desert Playback makes theater for social change in New Mexico and beyond. Our multiracial, queer + trans-centered ensemble uses the art of playback theatre to mobilize and amplify social issues through community outreach, engagement, dialogue, and celebration. Founded by Lynn Johnson and Allison Kenny in 2023, High Desert Playback—a Black/queer/women-led social enterprise—is the first professional playback theatre company in New Mexico and a fiscally sponsored project of the New Mexico Foundation.

About Health Equity Alliance of LGBTQ+ New Mexicans (HEAL Plus NM):

We are queer and trans+ New Mexicans united in our vision for liberation. We believe that all people have a right to live long, healthy lives. HEAL Plus NM has two arms that work for justice for lesbian, gay, bisexual, two-spirit, transgender, gender non-conforming, queer, intersex, asexual, pansexual, and questioning (LGBTQIA2s+) people. One arm of our organization works by and for our LGBTQIA2S+ community to build health resources, increase queer power through creative collaboration, and uplift the New Mexican culture that treasures our queer and trans+ siblings. The other arm works to bring queer and trans voices to change the environments that we live in. By centering LGBTQIA2S+ people with an intersectional approach produces community-sourced collective solutions that serve all people.

We gather our communities for connection and healing. We create resources such as SQUINCH4GSA's and SQUINCH4Families, and partner with healthcare providers in our queer-and trans-affirming directory, Bright Spaces, Welcome Places.

We work with providers and health systems to increase access to healthcare, health knowledge, and express a culture that affirms queer and trans+ lives. We have gathered since 2003, and we know that community connection and freedom from violence are essential to create health equity for our people.

SQUINCH4GSA's - HEALplusNM.org/SQUINCH

SQUINCH4Families- HEALplusnm.org/SQUINCH4Families

Bright Spaces, Welcome Places- BrightSpacesNM.org

Info: Play premiere

Info: Join us for music, mingling, and community resources

Host or Publisher HEAL+ NM