 Okay, hi. Hi everyone. My name is Molly and I am a co-director of Central Vermont Playback Theater with Lucy and this is we're the Central Vermont Playback Theater troupe and we're going to do a little show here that's a mixture of participation from all of you. We're going to be asking for feeling words, stories, based around this creating the culture of consent theme that we've been working today. So I'm going to let the art speak for itself. We're going to show you some Playback Theater and then we'll invite some stories from you. Okay, thank you so much for coming. I've been working on in my life around consent is speaking up when something is off. My body tells me there's something off and it takes a little bit for me to actually go from that gut to mouth. My name is Molly. Sheed her pronouns. Right now I'm trying to figure out what a deep true real yes feels like. My name is Leslie. I use she her pronouns. Yes! I'm working on asking for what I want, what I need and sometimes I don't sometimes I just don't and I get the story that I'm telling myself instead of what's actually available to me. Abby or AJ and I use she and they pronouns. Something that I'm working on about consent is about naming and sharing what it is that I really really want and asking for it and knowing that it is delightful for what I have. My name is Lisa and I use she and yeah. This past year I wrote a letter to a friend whose consent I had breached a few years back and I'd never done anything like that before and I learned a lot from the process of trying to prepare consent by going back over what had happened and reimagining how it could have gone differently. My name is Lucy. I use she and they pronouns. How could it be different? So this is the rhythm of it. Well, first stories we'll ask for a word and then we'll show you through sound, movement, phrases and I am the conductor for the show so I'll be talking to you and pulling the story out of you and then giving it to these amazing actors to shape. So let's just start off with a playback is all about feelings and integrating the feelings that we feel about the stories and narratives in our lives. So I'm wondering how many people are feeling feelings around consent being here at this event. Yeah, great. Got feelings going on. Just popcorn, shout them out a little bit. What kind of feelings are you feeling right now here at this event? Anxiety, apprehension, resentment, resentment. That's a that's a juicy one. Would you mind talking a little bit more about resentment? Where's that resentment coming from? I'm one of two people of color I see here and my body is always under constant policing by the dominator culture. So I'm withdrawing my consent today for people to do that. This is Opeyemi's story of resentment. Let's watch. I withdraw my consent. I withdraw. You better know who you are before you assume who I am. I withdraw my consent. You better know who you are before you ask who I am. You better know who you are before you ask who I am. Not today. Not today. I withdraw my consent. Who are you today? I'm here. I'm safe today. I'm here. Thank you, actors. I saw my story. Hey, thank you. See, thank you. Oh, verify. I don't testify. Oh, verify. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. I hate it. It's a while to get my drink. Yeah, okay. Other feelings. I heard apprehension. I heard anxiety. What else? What else are you feeling? Hope. Hope. Yeah. Yeah. Do you want to talk more about that? Yeah. I got to have an amazing conversation with a young human in the Vermont network. And there's always just such brilliance in the young people. Yes, brilliance in the young. That's beautiful. Right there, right? Right here with you. That's beautiful. Okay. What is your name, please? Ornella. And would you like to see your story? Sure. All right. This is Ornella's story. Hope. Let's watch. I trust the world in your hands. I trust the world in your hands. Hope you give me. Makes me feel a little bit. I trust the world. I'm listening. I can stretch. I'm listening. Oh my gosh, the young people. Violation. Sounds like it's bringing up some old story or an old experience. Okay, so a fear that you're consent. Thank you. What's your name? Alisa. Alisa. Thank you for sharing. We're going to see Alisa's story of that fear. A fear that consent might be violated again. Let's watch. No. Am I safe? No. Is it okay? No. Not again. Do you want to move to this space in the shade? Right. So this is just one form. This is a fluid sculpture form in playback theater and we have a couple of different ones. So now we can shift and take some longer stories where we can have a conversation, get some more details about your story, and see it in a different form of playback. Maybe. Fluids also are a great form to use. But I'm wondering if today, you know, we've heard a little bit, being here at this event is bringing up some feelings about things that have happened in the past, hope for the future, talking to young people, and I'm wondering if you're sitting there and hearing other people's stories is maybe bringing up a story, a story that you connect with or that relates to an experience that you've had. I won't call on you as anybody feeling that little like, I might have something to share. Okay. Little hand. Little shrug. And from those little hands, little shrugs, anything you want to explore with us? That story, a title. What would you call it? Thank you, Martha. We'll take that. All right, so we'll see it in a pair. And this is Martha's story. I'm never having sex with men again. Let's watch. It should know it because I know it. My body doesn't know it yet. I really wish it knew it. Come on, body. Come on, body. Know it. Friends, I need help. Community. Can you hold me now? I need to talk about this. There's something I need to say, so I wasn't held. I should have known better. I practiced this. I practiced this. I've done work. It's about this. Support now. Through support now. But in the moment, in the moment, I can feel the ground. I can feel my friends. I can feel my body now. I know what I want. I'm never doing this again. I'm doing it. I'm frozen. It's so held. By my people. I'm the best we can. This together. Tiffany's anger. I said no. And I sure as hell did not say yes. I said no. I sure as hell did not say yes. You crossed up. I said no. You crossed I'm head to gut. Let's watch. Garden here in North Carolina. Got all my herb friends. And the conversations I'm having for talking about consent. That was a good conversation I had with that person. Just consent. I'm going to plant my garden and be my friends. My friends. But I feel just something's a little flat. Tell me what you know about boundaries. Tell me what you know about your limits. Tell me what you know. This feeling and it's rising from my organs. Sloshing around and it's moving up and it's all of these teachers and it's all of these young people and it's everyone here today and it's everyone not here today and it's this community and it's my place in it and it's everything I've learned and it's it's it's it's just so big. So thank you so much for coming to this event here today. We're looking forward to the March. It's going to be starting a little bit and we want to leave you with one final tableau one final ritual that we like to do. It's something called once there was let's watch. Once there was a lot of hope from the young people inspiring us. Once there was a name that was said just right. Opeyemi. There was fierce. Once there was a community that validated and said that was wrong. But many friends to hold in it that was wrong. Opeyemi. Have hope and give me hope. That is not your fault. Please say it right. Thank you for that hope. You didn't do anything wrong. Opeyemi. I feel it in my heart.