Inflatable rafts on the Mediterranean. Dark holds of cargo trucks. Family photos wrapped carefully in a backpack that crosses border checkpoints. These are some of the powerful images of modern-day humanity-in-motion as depicted in the theater piece CARTOGRAPHY. Sewn from stories of young Eritrean and Syrian refugees, CARTOGRAPHY fuses dance, film, map-making and projections to explore the tragedy and wonder of young lives in motion.

While we cannot gather in person at this time, the Hop is excited to present this production virtually to continue to support school curricular explorations. Classrooms can engage with CARTOGRAPHY and its artists in the following ways:

• Registering for FREE on demand access to a video of the production along with an educational study guide and lesson plans corresponding with curriculum standards. To sign up for on demand access of the show, please call or email our Box Office (603.646.2422 or hop.box@dartmouth.edu) or email Education and Engagement Manager Ally Tufenkjian at ally.s.tufenkjian@dartmouth.edu
• Scheduling a virtual Q&A or workshop with the artists so students can explore the core ideas in CARTOGRAPHY; examine their own relationship to and histories of movement; and promote creative engagement with this historical moment of migration. Fees vary depending on the length of the engagement with the artists. 

To inquire further, please contact Education and Engagement Manager Ally Tufenkjian at ally.s.tufenkjian@dartmouth.edu

About the Making of CARTOGRAPHY

Author and illustrator Christopher Myers joined forces with theater director Kaneza Schaal, who cut her theatrical teeth with such highly regarded ensembles as Elevator Repair Service and The Wooster Group. Myers and Schaal, who have collaborated before, began developing CARTOGRAPHY after working in Munich with young refugees. Although separated by language and tradition, the children had critical experiences in common from their migrant journeys. "There was one moment where a young woman from Syria, who was living in the same residence as someone from Nigeria, realized they had both been on inflatable rafts on the Mediterranean," says Schaal. "There was this moment of understanding between them: you know what I am talking about." CARTOGRAPHY aims to extend this moment of understanding beyond those who are classed as refugees and out towards the audience, especially young people. "It's such a gift to understand the world as one of migration as opposed to these hot points of tension and trauma," says Myers. "We wanted to use theatre to create a point of contact through which people who have experienced this kind of hardship and the people who have never experienced this kind of hardship could meet and see each other."

Photos: Elman Studio