We are thrilled to be a part of this years Deep Water Literary Festival. We will be sharing an excerpt from Lucy Joseph, A new Farm Arts Collective performance in development in 2024, based on the life of local historical figure, Lucy Ann Joseph Israel Lobdell. Directed by Mimi McGirl with contributed story and texts from novelist Bill Klaber (The Rebellion of Miss Lucy Ann Lobdell), L.A. Lobdell (The Female Hunter of Delaware and Sullivan Counties), and other historical texts, the original musical performance is in development with Jess Beveridge, Tannis Kowalchuk, Doug Rogers, and Pam Arnold.

This segment of the festival entitled “The Queer Woods” brings up the questions What does it mean to be in a natural environment? What grows, what lives, what thrives in the space of uncultivated wildness? Queer spaces are most often conceived of as built environments; the bookstore, the club, a neighborhood full of rainbow flags. This talk proposes that forests, woodland meadows, and maybe even a large backyard have been there too, offering those of us who never quite fit in a place for self-discovery and acceptance. One part tree science lecture, one part queer literary history, and finally, this will be a meditation on the wilderness as a celebration of diverse humanity and its infinite possibilities. 

The program will include a short film by Cassandra Rogers and a reading by Jess Beveridge of the Farm Arts Collective.