Then a Cunning Voice and A Night We Spend Gazing at Stars weaves together stories and performance with the exchange of ideas, the sharing of food, and the endurance of spending a night together outside under the stars and sky at Calumet Park. Beginning at dusk and continuing until after sunrise, and including supper, breakfast, and snacks, Then a Cunning Voice… invites audience members into a multilayered, participatory work that focuses attention on the space we share and on envisioning the future.

Throughout the night, the audience will be guided through a series of richly crafted events—part ritual, part lyrical adventure—created by Johnson in collaboration with performers Tania Isaac and 14-year-old Georgia Lucas. The performance will begin with an opening ceremony and a group walk that arrives at the shores of Lake Michigan and unfolds on 4,000 square feet of quilts. Designed by textile artist Maggie Thompson, each quilt has been hand-made by volunteers at community sewing bees. The quilts serve as audience seating, performance area, resting area, and “home” for the duration.

The night creates space for connection.

It is celebratory, to come together like this.

Join us around the campfire and under the stars.