Artemis Joined the Women’s March in Downtown Los Angeles

On the morning of Saturday, January 21, members of Artemis and friends participated in the Women’s March Los Angeles downtown.

Tempest: A Rehearsed Reading

On December 2, 2016, we staged our first show; an all-women production of William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest,” to commemorate the 400th year following his death. The performance happened a few weeks after the election — and the play became both weapon to critique and a source of comfort. The audience was invited to examine notions of power; who has the right to power, and who is disempowered and exploited as a result of that hegemony.

Though emerging in a difficult period, one of the fundamental roles of art and theatre (particularly during this time) is to question the status quo. By making The Tempest an all-women production, it provoked questions about the power-imbalance in a gendered, colonial society, dealing with dark themes that shone a light on a reality that many have been facing for years, and that many will face in the coming years. But alongside this, The Tempest created an all-women space, both on stage and off, for us to process the events of the election — not to deny reality, but to come to terms with it.

It’s been nearly two months since The Tempest went up, and we are feeling nostalgic. A huge thank you to the most hardworking, talented, and kind group of people who helped put this together. We couldn’t be more proud of our first show, and we couldn’t have done it without you.