Mammalian Droppings

What is Mammalian Droppings?

Mammalian Droppings is a new pilot-project that tests an international young creators ensemble and production model, in order to diversify leadership roles and test an environmentally responsible model for the creation and sharing of work internationally.

The program begins with three research periods in Québec City, Milan and Riga. Led by the interests of ensembles of local emerging artists, we will explore each locale and conceive a suite of small-scale, socially-engaged performances. These performances will then be realized in a different city, supported by their local ensemble of emerging artists, who have also gone through the same process, with their ideas, in turn, being realized in yet another city, supported by yet another group of emerging artists!

How it works

Each presenting partner will lead a research phase for a local group of emerging artists, in which a number of small-scale socially-engaged performances are conceived. Following some time further cultivating the idea, the presenting partner, along with their ensemble, will support the realization of a performance work conceived in another city, which will be led by delegates from that city. In turn, representatives from each presenting partner’s ensemble will travel to do the same. 

This project will continue to fold in new presenting partners, who will typically join for 18 months, with two on-the-ground performance interventions, and one touring opportunity per presenting partner. 

This project tests more environmentally sustainable, collaborative ways of making international work, and exists to offer pathways to individuals who do not typically see themselves in the arts and culture sector.

This program will create long-term collaborative opportunities between international presenters and local young creators and will foster international relationships and cultural exchange in an environmentally responsible way. By shifting the focus of creation from individual artists to a network that includes presenters, community members, and locale-specific artists, Mammalian Droppings will offer entirely new methods in how to form deep, collaborative relationships across cultures and continents.

This ambitious pilot is supported by the Canada Council for the Arts’ Strategic Innovation Fund: Cultivate grant.

Adrift on Avotu Street with The International Festival of Contemporary Theatre Homo Novus; Riga, Latvia

From August 31 – September 7, 2024, Mammalian led Riga’s Homo Novus Festival School with Adrift on Avotu Street. Adrift was the proof of concept for Mammalian Droppings and marks the project’s first phase. 

This intensive performance workshop focused on the art and science of the socially-engaged site visit. We spent the week meeting the people who live, work, walk and roll on Avotu Street, asking them questions about their lives and about who they think are the most interesting people living, working, walking and rolling on Avotu Street.

After this field research, we came together to generate ideas for small-scale performances inspired by each and every person we met on Avotu Street. This exploration resulted in 45 new project ideas that were then presented to Homo Novus and the community.

Mammalian Droppings with Les Productions Recto-Verso; Quebec City, Canada

From September 30 – October 5, 2024, Mammalian Droppings kicked-off in Québec City, Canada, in collaboration with Les Productions Recto Verso. 

Our ensemble consisted of eight emerging and professional artists with an interest in performance and social research. Leaning into our Everyone Is Interesting framework, we interviewed local Québecers to uncover new socially-engaged performance concepts.

This immersive week led to the generation of 10 ready-to-pitch projects, including a chocolate-themed personality test facilitated by a local chocolatier and children “personality chefs,” a flea market of Christmas pasts, and a VR exhibition created by people living with cancer and cancer survivors, focused on themes of pleasure and lust.

These pitches have paved the way for future projects and partnerships, keep an eye out for where we’ll be next!

What’s Next for Mammalian Droppings?

Following the successful wrap up of Phase 1 in Riga, Latvia and Québec City, Canada, we’re thrilled to commence Phase 2. For this next stage, the eager ensemble from Riga will re-imagine a selection of their projects in Québec City in April 2025, testing and strengthening these concepts in a different cultural context.

To find out when and where in Québec that next dropping is, sign up to our eNews to get the most up-to-date information on this exciting new project.

We will also be updating this webpage regularly as Mammalian Droppings grow and take form over the coming months.

Project Credits

Mammalian Diving Reflex’s Mammalian Droppings is being developed in Canada, Italy, and Latvia in 2024-25, with its next round of partners to begin in 2026 with partners in Denmark, and the UK confirmed. 

Current partners include Recto Verso (Canada), BASE (Italy), Homo Novus (Latvia) and additional presenters to be announced. 

Mammalian Droppings is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts’ Strategic Innovation Fund: Cultivate grant.