Plant Fetish at The PUSH Festival 2019

Aim

Help fund 'Plant Fetish', a new show to uplift, and inspire people to overcome stress. It will be presented at PUSH festival and then tour

ABOUT ME

I am Chanje Kunda, a poet, playwright and performance artist based in Manchester. I make work on themes of race, gender, transformation and limitlessness. I have a solo collection of poetry published and have previously toured 2 full length shows: 'Amsterdam' which toured extensively, including features at The Southbank Centre London, the National Arts Festival of South Africa. The next show, 'Superposition' premiered at the Lowry and toured the UK. To continue to develop and succeed as an artist, I need to make new work. My website is www.chanjekunda.com

‘Chanje’s writing is exceptionally evocative…‘ Kevin Jamieson, Senior Producer HOME

‘ Exceeds all expectations of a one-woman performer’                                                            Allie Liu The Mancunion (MANCHESTER UNIVERSITY PRESS)

‘Highly imaginative…so lively and moving that there can be no barriers to audiences having a very good time indeed.’
WHAT’S ON STAGE ****

www.chanjekunda.com

About 'Plant Fetish':

The show I want your support to fund was inspired by real life experience. I was suffering with stress and anxiety and discovered a book called 'Plant Style' that explained that plants reduce stress, and increase creativity and productivity. So I start buying lots of plants in a bid to save myself from my impending demise. Then, whilst scrolling the web I discover that some single women in Mexico have given up on men and are marrying trees instead. Their new grooms aren’t very talkative, but they are tall, do great things for the planet and are renowned for their wood. I surrender to the ideology of it and fall in love with plants. It changed my life and I am making a show about it.

The show will be a celebration of diversity, and be designed to inspire people to reclaim the right to experience joy, to dance and enjoy exotic plants and nature, outside of the ideologies that make people stressed out in the first place.

This show will feature comedy, dance, and tragedy; exploring the afore mentioned themes. Metaphors of, growth, blossoming, seeds of potential, will intersperse between memories of passionate relationships that combust like fireworks. Collaborating with a team I will also feature visual projection and music. Set on a stage dressed in beautiful exotic plants, I want to make the show visually stunning as well as conceptually inspiring. It will end on a climax. There will be programmers and commissioners attending Plant Fetish show at the PUSH Festival and it will lead the way for me to tour the new show.

What the money will be used to pay towards the cost of:

The theatre are providing rehearsal space, marketing support, technicians, and inviting programmers and commissioners, as well as offering a box office split. I am doing this crowd funder to raise money to develop the show. I want to work with the choreographer, sound designer, lighting designer and VJ artist I worked with on previous shows. I also want some directorial support. The funding I get will go towards their fees as well as my own, so you will be supporting an array of talented creative people. 

As a woman, as a black artist, I do face barriers, but I have made a commitment to raise the funds to make art. Your support is the only way I can make it happen.  This money is important to secure match funding from the Arts Council.  Your donation is seed funding to grow the show so Please donate.

This project successfully funded on 23rd November 2018