Red Eye Presents:

40th Anniversary Celebration

Friday, May 17, 2024

SAVE THE DATE

This year (well, the very end of 2023, to be exact) marks 40 years of Red Eye’s existence! 40 years of developing, nurturing, incubating, experimenting, iterating, and sharing new performance work—spanning genres and mediums, three different spaces, and many different eras, but always, always led by artists. It takes a lot of love, luck, and labor to make it that long—and it wouldn’t be possible without all the people who have been part of Red Eye’s community over the decades. We’re taking a moment to celebrate all of you, to celebrate these eras, and to usher in the next.

Please mark your calendars for Friday, May 17! Kicking off the 2024 New Works 4 Weeks Festival, the 40th anniversary celebration will be followed by four weeks of new performance work, led by 10 incredible artists. Tickets for all events will go on sale soon. In the meantime, here are some ways you can have a hand in shaping this moment!

CALL FOR PERFORMANCES

Red Eye invites ideas for 40 short (under a minute!) low- to no-tech performance moments that will unfold over the duration of the event—celebrating Red Eye’s past, present, and future! 

You could consider:

  • Re-performing a favorite/legendary/iconic moment from a show that took place at Red Eye, 1983-present

  • Imagining a memory of a past performance, based on photos, stories, or both

  • Encapsulating the current spirit/present vibe of Red Eye

  • Envisioning a performance that could take place at Red Eye in the future

  • Making a wish for the future of this performance community. 

Inter/anti/transdisciplinary welcome. Solos or collaborations are welcome but keep it simple!

Parameters:

  • Performances should be no longer than 60 seconds. We’re serious!

  • The space will be generally lit, and we will have one microphone and an aux cable. Any other sound or lighting should be self-contained within the piece, and operated by you or a collaborator. Accordingly, there will be no tech rehearsal and we are not providing a technician to run cues. You can also forgo these elements. Again, keep it simple!

  • Performances will pop up in different places in the space while the event is underway, with no fixed seating. Plan to be flexible! 

  • You should be available from 6-11 pm on Friday, May 17.

This celebration is, in part, a fundraiser, so we are asking for these micro-performances as donations in support of Red Eye; there is no payment for participation. However, as a little offering of thanks for your contribution, in addition to receiving a comp ticket to the event, artists will receive a code for 2-for-1 tickets to all Red Eye productions (does not include curated rentals) from New Works 4 Weeks 2024 through April 30, 2025. Please note that, while we are seeking a critical mass of micro-performances, we likely won’t be able to feature all of the artists who express interest in this call; but we hope everyone will join us for the celebration regardless! We truly appreciate your interest and your support of Red Eye, in all the many forms it takes. 

Timeline:

  • Submit your interest via Google form by April 21

    • Name & contact info

    • What is your connection to Red Eye?

    • 1-3 sentences about what you want to do. (Quick notes are fine, no need to spend a lot of time on this!)

  • We’ll respond by the end of April

If you have any questions about this event, any accessibility requests, or you would like to submit in a different format, please email us at staff@redeyetheater.org.

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS & IN-KIND DONORS

We are also looking for volunteers to support this event! If you are willing to take on small- to medium-sized tasks between now and the event on May 17, please reach out and we will find a way for you to plug in. Areas we can use help with include:

  • Food and drink: brainstorming and sourcing food and drink donations, going shopping and running errands, borrowing and returning items such as tables, coolers, tableware, etc.

  • Silent auction: brainstorming themes, contacting potential donors for auction items, donating items or experiences for the auction yourself, creating a display for the silent auction

  • Decor: including but not limited to memorabilia, signage, slideshow, photo booth, general festive space treatments

  • Staffing on May 17: setup, box office/check-in, refilling food/drink, cleanup

If you want to get more involved with Red Eye, this is a great way to do it! Please send us a message at staff@redeyetheater.org and we’ll follow up. We’re grateful for all types of support!

SUPPORT RED EYE

Red Eye is making progress towards our 40th Anniversary goal of gathering 40 performance-lovers to launch The Reservoir! This is a group of committed recurring monthly donors who are deepening Red Eye's financial sustainability, making possible EVEN MORE creative risks, equitable pay, and space as a resource for artists and audiences alike. Anyone can join The Reservoir by signing up for a monthly recurring donation!

Of course, we're forever grateful for one-time donations, too! You can support online through GiveMN. Red Eye also can receive contributions through PayPal, Venmo (@supportredeye), and by mail (2213 Snelling Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55404).

Every bit counts, and adds up! Thank you so much for being part of Red Eye!