High Winds

Sylvan Oswald

Writer Sylvan Oswald and director Ellie Heyman present High Winds, a performance text about a trans man whose insomnia sparks a fantastical search for his estranged half-brother through hallucinatory desert landscapes. Gas stations, local legends, and unlikely rock formations become terrain for explorations of fear, fantasy, masculinity, and what lies “deep inside America.”

Based on his book of the same name, created with graphic designer Jessica Fleischmann, and published by X Artists Books (2017). Lighting design by Sarah Lurie, video by Katherine Freer and an electro-acoustic score by JJJJJerome Ellis set an otherworldly tone.

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Written and Produced by Sylvan Oswald

Directed by Ellie Heyman

Original Music by JJJJJerome Ellis

Video Design by Katherine Freer inspired by designer Jessica Fleischmann’s images

Lighting Design & Production Stage Management by Sarah Lurie

Costume Design by Haydee Zelideth

Featuring Jack Henry & S.O.

With Additional Music and Lyrics by Dane Terry

The text was written on land traditionally cared for by the Kizh, Chumash, and Tongva people (Los Angeles); Comanche, Kickapoo, Coahuiltecan, and Lipan Apache (Kerrville, TX); Munsee Lenape and Canarsie (Brooklyn). Thank you to Abrons Arts Center, Los Angeles Performance Project, and Rick Burkhardt for hosting earlier versions of the show. Thanks to Luke Zimmerman for creating the role. Deepest gratitude to X Artists’ Books for bringing High Winds to light and to UCLA’s Council on Research, School of Theater, Film & Television, and Hellman Fellowship for their generous support.