The show, 鈥淒r. G鈥檚 Bingo Extravaganza,鈥� aims to transport people into a playful and joyous world through an immersive production that puts the audience at its center. It opens Wednesday at Ashland鈥檚 Carpenter Hall and runs through July 24, but its origins go back to early in the pandemic 鈥� or even decades earlier than that, depending on how you look at it.
, the performance collective that created the experience, began the journey to 鈥淒r. G鈥檚 Bingo Extravaganza鈥� in response to the pandemic鈥檚 isolation. The group sought to connect artists with older adults.
鈥淚 remember just my parents being isolated, people鈥檚 grandparents being isolated and all of these artists wanting to be productive and creative,鈥� said Erika Chong Shuch, a core artist with For You.
鈥淪o we started, essentially, a dating service where we were connecting artists and elders for individual exchanges. And over the course of the pandemic, we paired upwards of 80 artists and elders in a number of projects.鈥�
Through this work, the group was introduced to southern Oregon resident Geneva Craig, who holds a Ph.D. in nursing from Walden University, and who is also known as Dr. G. Over the course of multiple Zoom meetings, the For You collective learned about Craig鈥檚 life and decades-long fight for civil rights. They also learned about her love of bingo.
Members of the wanted to honor her work and her spirit.
And so 鈥溾�� was born.
鈥淒r. G has had an incredible life and has been met with a lot of hardship, and she has made this very conscious, deliberate, rigorous decision to now live in a place where she is seeking joy,鈥� Shuch said. 鈥淎 lot of the joy that she seeks and that she gives and that she shares with the world is this effusive kind of love that she has for strangers and for good friends.鈥�
The event aims to transport its audience into a playful and joyous world loosely based on Craig鈥檚 experiences.
鈥淧erformance is an opportunity to bring groups of strangers together,鈥� Shuch said. 鈥淎nd see each other in a new, playful light.鈥�
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