Performing Transecology is an interdisciplinary, participatory event which features creative projects developed in response to the unique desert ecology of the Burns Piñon Ridge Reserve. Artists from across the Claire Trevor School of the Arts will present and install works which facilitate dialogues between human and nonhuman beings in the performance landscape.
Central to Performing Transecology is the idea of care: caring about and taking care of those beings in our environment, which includes each other. This means that the event is designed to be a collective experience, one enriched by the participation of all attendees. You bring yourself, and we will take care of you. Food and drinks will be provided, although you’re welcome to bring extra, if you’d like. You’re welcome to stay overnight, if you don’t want to drive home in the dark. You’re especially welcome to join in for our final performance of the night, a group improvisation which requires no rehearsal and no musical background. We’re going to perform it outside, together, after the sun goes down and the desert gets cool and so, so quiet. It’s going to be so much fun. And then we’ll have dessert.
DATE: Sunday 12th October 2025
TIME: 5-9pm
LOCATION: Burns Piñon Ridge Reserve, Yucca Valley, CA
ALL WELCOME
FOOD AND DRINKS PROVIDED
Featuring original works by Oliver George-Brown, Isaac Otto, Eric Backus, Reed Wixson, and Alystair Rogers.
PhD Candidate in Integrated Composition, Improvisation & Technology
Department of Music, University of California, Irvine
Supervisor: Prof Rajna Swaminathan
With assistance from Prof Jesse Colin Jackson, Artist-in-Residence Zebulon Zang, Reed Wixson, and Dr Isaac Otto
AV assistance from Dr Chris Hadley
This event is supported by the University of California Nature Reserve System, UCI Illuminations, and the CTSA Research & Innovation Fund.
Site access instructions will be provided closer to the event. Please contact ocbrown[at]uci.edu for more information.