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Abstract or Project Description

Abstract or Project Description

Translated and adapted by Torange Yeghiazarian and commissioned by Golden Thread Productions, “Khosrow & Shirin” fuses Iranian storytelling and live music with an epic re-telling of the classic Persian poem of the love between a Sasanian king and an Armenian princess in a public developmental workshop in early 2027.

Abstract or Project Description

“Long Covid: It’s. Not. Over.” is a high-impact dance-on-film piece and community wellness campaign featuring Grown Black dancers and Long Covid survivors. It amplifies survivors’ voices and critical public health information via dance and multi-generational community arts and wellness gatherings in Oakland, East Contra Costa County and via social media, supporting those isolated and left behind by the ongoing Long Covid crisis.

Abstract or Project Description

Autoimmune diseases, including many Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD), reflect a breakdown in immunological tolerance. The immune system is designed to respond to foreign molecules (nonself-antigens) while ignoring an organism’s own constituents (self-antigens). For T cells, much of this self-tolerance is learned during their maturation in the thymus, through either elimination of potentially self-reactive cells or their pacification. But how is the T-cell repertoire purged of cells that recognize antigens not encountered until after they migrate into the periphery? We recently discovered a novel mechanism for previewing peripheral antigens to maturing T cells: thymic mimetics. These amazing cells are molecular hybrids between a small group of thymic stromal cells and diverse peripheral cell-types, and were shown to promote immunological tolerance to the peripheral cell-types’ antigens. A mimetic cell-type that has drawn our attention is thymic goblet-cell mimetics. Goblet cells, prominent in the intestine, safeguard the organism from microbial invasion by secreting mucins to form a protective mucus layer. Individuals with IBD often have aberrant goblet-cell histology and/or anti-goblet-cell autoantibodies. The overall goals of this project are to determine whether and how thymic goblet-cell mimetics control intestinal self-reactivity in mice and whether at least some human IBDs have a similar etiology.

Abstract or Project Description

“REBEL BODIES: Medea / She Is the Monkey King” is a new interdisciplinary dance-theater piece by Jia Wu, Emiko Saraswati Susilo and Lydia Greer. Merging Asian traditional dance forms, dance theater, Balinese shadow puppetry and animation, this work explores immigrant displacement. It will premiere at the Great Star Theater in San Francisco in spring 2028.

Abstract or Project Description

Kearny Street Workshop, with Lead Artist Kim Acebo Arteche and collaborating artists Joshua Icban and Transcriptions01, presents “pact: proto-calls of belonging”–transforming Queer Filipinx oral histories into embodied chant, song and dance. Developed through community research, it culminates in site-based community rituals across San Francisco in 2028 that honor the history of the Filipino Task Force on AIDS.

Abstract or Project Description

“Ahualulco,” in development by Choreographer Vanessa Sanchez, is a 60-minute percussive dance and music work featuring 12 artists across dance and musical tradtions exploring the cultural, historical and rhythmic connections between Veracruz [Mexico] and Cuba.

Abstract or Project Description

“Requiem for the End of Empire” is a new performance inviting the public–through participatory performance ritual–to craft a new social contract for the United States during the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

Abstract or Project Description

“Glamputee’s LEGacy Ball” is a multimedia performance featuring an ensemble of five Black, queer, trans and disabled artists that celebrates accessible art through Drag performance.

Abstract or Project Description

“Journey to Home” is an immersive, site-responsive, interactive intervention in the form of participatory performances staged inside a residence in San Francisco’s Sunset District by Golden Gate Park. A light meal will be served.

Abstract or Project Description

“GH: 456” is Episodes 4, 5 and 6 of “Government Housing,” a ten-episode AfroFuturist multidisciplinary work written and directed by Dr. ayodele nzinga, featuring an ensemble of Black Bay Area artists and produced by the Lower Bottom Playaz.

Abstract or Project Description

The Magic Theatre presents the world premiere of “A Rashomon” by Ashley Smiley (Playwright) and Joan Osato (Project Creator & Video Designer). Using elements of environmental and theatrical design, contemporary and ritual dance, a multi-layered soundscape and puppetry, Smiley and Osato adapt Akira Kurosawa’s 1950 masterpiece to current-day Bayview Hunters’ Point.

Abstract or Project Description

The creation and world-premiere of plays written and performed by the Returned Citizens Theatre Troupe, actors who have survived incarceration and who tell stories of importance through theatre that build understanding and compassion and inspires social change.

Abstract or Project Description

“Ashes & Ancestry” is a new outdoor dance theatre production featuring dancers and live percussion. It explores how Carnival’s street theatre and participatory ritual can be translated into an immersive performance engaging themes of liberation through embodied remembrance.

Abstract or Project Description

The immune system in the gut faces a unique challenge: it must rapidly attack harmful microbes while coexisting with trillions of beneficial bacteria that promote digestion and health. When this balance fails, the immune system can mistakenly attack harmless microbes, leading to pathologies such as IBD. Although scientists have identified rare immune cells that promote tolerance to beneficial bacteria, it remains unclear how such scarce cells orchestrate this process throughout the gut. We propose that the immune system solves this problem by organizing immune responses in space. Specifically, we hypothesize that immune cells called T cells route to different regions within gut-draining lymph nodes based on the strength of the signals they receive. T cells sensing harmless bacteria receive weaker signals and are guided into specialized regions that promote tolerance. Conversely, T cells sensing dangerous pathogens receive stronger signals and remain in inflammatory zones, enabling protective responses. This project will use advanced, high-resolution imaging to map how immune cells interact within lymph nodes under healthy and inflammatory conditions. By uncovering the spatial rules that separate tolerance from inflammation, we aim to understand why immune balance breaks down during IBD and identify new strategies for restoring immune regulation in the gut.