About this work
A:gajë:gwah dësa’nigöëwë:nye:’ (i hope it will stir your mind) is a dance work, an installation, and a community engagement project. From Rosy Simas’ movement practice of deep listening to the earth, stars, ancestors, and each other comes a dynamic Native contemporary dance work that draws the audience into a space of relationality.
A:gajë:gwah dësa’nigöëwë:nye:’ (i hope it will stir your mind) weaves a mind of peace into every aspect of its creation—every stitch of the set, every movement, sound, and image is imbued with a “good mind” and a peacemaking state of being.
Simas’ abstract transdisciplinary universe rejects false dichotomies between the traditional and contemporary, the sonic and somatic, the visual and the physical, even the separations between life and art.
Walker Art Center will present a related visual art exhibition and performances by Simas. Community engagement activities will accompany the performances and exhibition throughout 2026. These events bring the community together to experience peace, rest, and engage in community actions that cultivate peace.
Credits
Exhibition Credits
Lead Artist: Rosy Simas
Composer: François Richomme
Design & Fabrication Lead: Jeffrey Wells
Bench Design & Fabrication: James Simas, Seneca Nation of Indians
Lighting Design & Production: Heidi Eckwall
Fabrication Assistant: Eliza Erdrich, Descendant of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians
Video Assistant: Sequoia Hauck, Hupa/White Earth Nation
Accessibility Consultant: Barak adé Soleil
Onöndowa’ga:’ Gawë:nö’ (Seneca Language) Translation: Damian Webster, Tonawanda Seneca Nation
Onöndowa’ga:’ Material Culture Consultant: Jamie Jacobs, Tonawanda Seneca Nation
Performance Credits
Lead Artist: Rosy Simas
Composer: François Richomme
Performers: Sam Aros-Mitchell (Texas Band of Yaquì Indians), Talia Dixon (Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians), Charlie Maybee (Seneca Descent), Lela Pierce
Set Design: Heidi Eckwall, Rosy Simas, Jeffrey Wells
Benches: James Simas
Costume: Eliza Erdrich, Descendant of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians
Lead Access Consultant & Audio Description: Barak adé Soleil
Video Assistant, Audio Describer & Stage Manager: Sequoia Hauck, Hupa/White Earth Nation
Deaf ASL Interpreter: Cindi Martin, Red Lake Nation
Accessible Ramps: Alex Kermes & Jeffrey Wells
A:gajë:gwah dësa’nigöëwë:nye:’
Images: Exhibition and Performance
Acknowledgements
Rosy Simas is a 2023 Doris Duke Artist.
Support for A:gajë:gwah dësa'nigöëwë:nye:' (i hope it will stir your mind) is provided by the Mellon Foundation, Good Relatives Collaborative, National Performance Network’s Creation Fund and Documentation & Storytelling Initiative, the Map Fund, and the New England Foundation for the Arts' National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Foundation and the Mellon Foundation.
A:gajë:gwah dësa’nigöëwë:nye:’ (i hope it will stir your mind) is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
A:gajë:gwah dësa’nigöëwë:nye:’ (i hope it will stir your mind) co-commissioned by the Walker Art Center and Jacob’s Pillow.
Photo credits: