Performance photo from “Mating Calls” presented at UBC-Okanagan September 2013.
Kevin Jesuino says that when he started his B.F.A. in Interdisciplinary Performance at UBCO he didn’t realize that “community is a major part of my artistic practice. Making community, partnerships or spaces for artists and others to meet is part of who I am.” The unique Interdisciplinary Performance program helped him establish who he was as an artist. Prior to coming to UBCO, he had had a wide variety of artistic experiences; this meant that he was looking for a very specific campus to develop his capabilities.
Kevin Jesuino
In an interview, Kevin mentioned that he “searched high and low for an undergrad that would offer me the flexibility to use all the skills I already had, but to develop and add to this tool kit in ways that would help me explore different methods of creating live performance.” FCCS’s Interdisciplinary Performance program was still in its early stages when Kevin arrived, which allowed him to contribute to the development of the program as well as allowed him to explore “the full spectrum of live performance; everything from traditional playwriting to collective creation.” While at UBC Okanagan, he learned how to bring his skills into the city of Kelowna, a place he often refers to as a “laboratory” for new ideas; it is “a place where you can go and try things out, workshop ideas, incubate projects, etc.” During his time at UBC Okanagan, Kevin brought one of his unique projects, where the viewer plays an integral role in the shape of the piece, to Kelowna’s Alternator Gallery. The piece, called Aquarium demonstrates Kevin’s innovative philosophy that was nurtured and developed at UBCO.
Performance photo from “Lamp of John” at Fluidfest (Calgary) 2014.
Kevin has used the various skills he developed to understand the “full spectrum of live performance and how it intersects creative writing and visual arts, which gave me a large tool kit of ways to use and make live performance.” This unique multiple exposure to a range of fine arts helped him find work with Antyx Community Arts, a non-profit organization based in Calgary. Antyx “is focused on the community…. [Kevin] consults with the community and [has] them generate the work while [he] facilitates whatever needs they may have.” Kevin Jesuino represents one of many success stories for students of UBC Okanagan’s FCCS. According to Kevin, UBCO’s Interdisciplinary Performance program is “ultimately about empowering the performance-maker to consider innovative approaches in combining elements of creative writing, visual arts and live performance in ways that are not traditional and that may or may not fit into nice simple neat artistic categories.”
This story was written by Brandon Taylor, English major in FCCS. Brandon is a Research Assistant in FCCS, contacting alumni to find out about their experiences here at UBCO.