This iteration of WARP was developed from 16 hours of devised exploration at the intersection of lighting and projection design, object work, and physical theatre. Devised theatre is an unscripted process, building on perspectives and creative offerings of an ensemble, in exploration of a core thematic inquiry. The creative questions at the root of this devised workshop were 2-fold: to explore the motivations and actions of the characters in their effort to 'create space' in their own idiosyncratic ways, and to explore a set of theatrical symbolisms that can divert hackneyed representations of the War on Drugs.

Over 4 weeks, the ensemble accomplished a collaborative arc starting with an empty room and culminating in a fusion of creative proposals merging lighting, movement, imagery, and text. Playwright Erin Howley wrote the first phase of the WARP script with dramaturgical guidance from Dr. Honor Ford Smith. This workshop series and presentation was an overture to inform a second phase of script development. With a vision that aims to integrate a reflection on what it means to contend with the deeply intimate and simultaneously unwieldy political dimensions of the drug toxicity crisis, thoughts and input from the audience were invited to this work in progress.

Written by Erin Howley
Performed by Daibei Wang and Simone Matheson