1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
The “Future Bodies” performance is the culmination of a collaborative, semester-long partnership between the Parsons School of Design and the Guggenheim New York, in which students explored the concept of the “future body” through texts on embodiment, materiality, and spirituality. All elements of the performance—from choreography and costumes to spatial and sonic design, as well as collateral materials—were created by the students.
Participating students hail from undergraduate and graduate programs at the Parsons School of Design and represent a wide variety of perspectives, including Fashion Design, Fine Arts, Strategic Design Management, Fashion Design and Society, and Design History and Technology. Fiona Dieffenbacher, Associate Professor of Fashion and interim Co-Dean of the School of Fashion at Parsons School of Design, conceived of the course with input from Chitra Ramalingam, PhD, Director of Academic Engagement at the Guggenheim New York. Dieffenbacher directed students from the initial stages of conceptualizing the performance through the planning of each component. Cara Hagan, Associate Professor of Contemporary Theater and Performance (CTP) and Program Director of the MFA CTP program, supported the students in developing the choreography and the spatial and scenic aspects of the piece.