Search for Simurgh - NYC
Search for Simurgh is an immersive, interactive performance installation named for the Persian mythological bird akin to a Phoenix. In Search for Simurgh, the audience moves through a series of chambers as they take an active role in this multi-layered story that challenges assumptions about freedom.
Envisioned by Roya Movafegh and Kate Digby in 2013, the project has been through several iterations since Movafegh's untimely passing. From 2017-2019 Digby and Erika Batdorf led a collaborative group of designers and performers to create a workshop version performed in Toronto, and from 2020-2023, Digby created a new version of the piece which returned to the roots of the vision shared with Movafegh including a "forest of stories" comprised of interviews with 18 individuals about their experiences with forced migration, freedom, and the search for home.
The most recent iteration has ben supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, Kansas State University, Biopac Systems, Inc., nD::StudioLab, and individual donors.
Background Photo by Neo Shockley with Roya Movafegh. Production photos by Ismael Fernandez
