bag
A madcap romp through India as Mr. Dennis seeks the mysteries of life with a to-do list, juggling ashes, epiphanies and the Taj Mahal.
Written and performed by Dennis Elkins
August 4, 8, 11, 16, 19, 21, 24 @ 16:20
Venue 53 theSpace @ Surgeons Hall - Haldane Theatre
Written and performed by Dennis Elkins, bag-- is based the author’s trip to India in the winter of 2017—after the 2016 presidential election that predicated a major shift in US politics, and highlighted mr. dennis’ naïve world view. Attempting to find his future through a culture so different from his own, Elkins’ insightful storytelling offers wonderment and humor balanced against cynicism and fear in being the “other,”—while sharing “tips for travelers” that will reshape your own expectations for the changing world around us.
Refusing to join the “Old-White-Guys-Club” of exclusion and marginalization, master storyteller Dennis Elkins travels through India with a backpack of guilt, searching for a divine life-affirming epiphany.
In bag— (pronounced “bag dash”), a poignant comedy of travel and identity, Mr. Dennis crisscrosses India via buses, tuk-tuks and taxis in hopes of uncovering the mysteries of middle-age clutching his backpack and a 3-item to-do list; seek guidance from some appropriate spirit, scatter some of his son’s ashes in some appropriate place, see the Taj Mahal at some appropriate distance. Sadly, Mr. Dennis can hardly navigate his way out of the New Delhi airport. Traveling with a “circus” of oddly matched pilgrims, our hero confronts fears and stereotypes to prove “Old White Guys” don’t have to rule the world!
Directed by Karla Knudsen
Sound design and original music by Robert Hornbostel
Videography by William Kyle Odum and Sam Lowery
