sea eagle landing
Music: "Dreams" by Kelsey Lu; "Walk Away" by Donna Summer; "Liar" by Kelsey Lu
Performed by Beverly Lopez, Debbie Mausner, Hannah McClean, Madelyn Sher
The story of the Steller's sea eagle fascinated me instantly. This giant bird, which belongs to a very rare species, left its native homeland of Eastern Asia earlier this year and flew across the world to the west, where it was spotted in places including Massachusetts and Maine. As an amateur birder, and someone who is soon about to embark on a new life journey herself, the story of this vagrant, majestic bird that shows up where it's not supposed to be and causes a stir, really has sat with me. This piece is about realizing your own rare quality and making moves in order to adapt to a changing world. With the journey of an endangered bird inspiring this story, we are also thinking about the impending endangerment (and extinction) of animal and plant life due to the destruction of habitat and rising global temperatures. We are thinking about how animals and plants must adapt to a world shared with humans in order to survive. In this piece, we are imagining the inner life of a brave, adventurous bird that breaks the pattern of her ancestors in order to leave a hostile environment, find a new home, and make a fresh start for herself. Hannah, Debbie, Beverly and I are hoping to channel feelings of vagrancy, discovery, astonishment, and comfort, in order to find hopeful possibilities in light of an otherwise bleak world.
