Unexpected Places 4/For Unexpected Aerials, an outdoor, free to the public aerial performance series celebrating the texture of urban Baltimore performed by aerialist Mara Neimanis and guests. Evening performances are FREE and will take place on and around the unique Creative Alliance BUS sculpture. Each performance will be approx 30 minutes long.

Mara Neimanis, along with Baltimore-based cellist Ellen Cherry, will tackle the communality and necessity of public transportation with the piece While U Wait. They will explore the outsized nature of the 14ft tall BUS sculpture in this piece. Ellen will be hoisted inside the top of the letter B in BUS and present the musical component of this piece while Mara performs in and around the structure.

Waiting for the bus on BUS has become part of the daily routine of Highlandtown residents and this piece will expound on the unique nature of space and gravity that can be felt the first time a commuter steps onto one of these giant letters or off these letters and onto an MTA vehicle. Immediately following this performance, Richmond-based brass powerhouse band, No BS! Brass Band will provide music for a dance party.

Mara Neimanis is a recent Ruby award winning artist and former resident of Creative Alliance. She is the founder and principal performer of In-Flight Theater in Baltimore. Her work comprises original solo and ensemble aerial plays as well as on-site installation/performances Drawing on traditions of mask performance, clown, and commedia dell arte, her work integrates circus arts with physical acting to create stories, text, and characters which explore the rich interplay of imagination between air and ground. She, along with her co-performers, will be rehearsing on BUS throughout the summer. The near daily interactions on the structure and with Creative Alliance neighbors has provided a new perspective on city living and has made her “fall in love with Baltimore all over again.”

These performances mark the one year anniversary of the completion of BUS. Conceived by the Spanish artists mmmm…. and fabricated by Baltimore sculptors Kyle Miller and Tim Scofield in collaboration with Creative Alliance and the Southeast Community Development Corporation, this project was supported by the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts, the European Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC), and SPAIN arts & culture as part of the initiative TRANSIT – Creative Placemaking with Europe in Baltimore. This structure has garnered international attention for its inventive take on creative place making. Or, as Baltimore Magazine said, it is “The Coolest Bus Stop Ever.”

Unexpected Places 4/For Unexpected Aerials is a creation of In-Flight Theater, made possible by the kind support of The Klipper Family, Creative Alliance and The Rubys Artists Grant.