Olivia Mia Orozco

The Messenger

“a sensorial expression… from contemplation to catharsis, brutal honesty, and uptime liberation” —LA Weekly

The Messenger is a new dance theater performance by Olivia Mia Orozco created in collaboration with Julienne Mackey. Informed by Hopi creation and agricultural mythology, and Hopi Folktales, the work blends these influences to create an inspired story honoring the earth and bringing lessons from the past to enrich our futures collectively. The work plays with themes of the infinite nature of reality and the interconnectedness in us all.

Performed with Alexa Eisner’s installation, Atom Cycle.

This piece blurs the boundary between internal and external cycles. Alexa progressively layers found materials with live drawing to visually connect the body and environment together. The installation was unfolded through an integration process inspired by her oracle deck.

Director: Olivia Mia Orozco

Movement created collaboratively with Olivia Mia Orozco and Julienne Mackey

Performed by: Julienne Mackey

Atom Cycle Artist: Alexa Eisner

Installer: Cody Andersen

Sound Designer: Cochrane McMillan

Special thanks to Wendy and Pen Densham for a generous donation that helped in the creation of The Messenger.

Photo Highlights

Photo Credits: Michael C. Palma

Julienne Mackey for Olivia Mia Orozco’s The Messenger at the 2021 LAX Festival
Alexa Eisner for The Atom Cycle
Audience member with The Atom Cycle
Alexa Eisner (L), Olivia Mia Orozco (M), Julienne Mackey (R)

Olivia Mia Orozco, attended the University of California, Santa Barbara with a BFA in dance and a minor in philosophy. She has performed as a dancer throughout Los Angeles, New York, and Mexico with various choreographers including John Zullo, Rebeca Hernandez, Lula Washington, Jacqulyn Buglisi, Svea Schneider, Marjolane Auger, and Un-jin Kim. She choreographed and performed for the visual artist Scott Benzel inside the Hubble Telescope. She has shared her choreography in Los Angeles and New York. As a female artist, she explores the defining characteristics of women and is interested in archetypal figures while also questioning the shapings of the modern woman. Her work weaves tales from ancient myths to Hollywood thrillers to create work that both pays homage to classical dance while still maintaining a fresh look of the twenty-first century in its interwoven form. Slicing and mingling the old and new, she creates work that aims at authentically presenting her story, thoughts, dreams, and ambitions to audiences worldwide via the use of technology and live performance.

Alexa Eisner is an interdisciplinary artist integrating dance, painting, installation, and video perspectives. Her art builds textured atmospheres where she blends the body with materials to express cycles of change. She is interested in identity as process – both internally & externally – and explores transparency, boundary, and empathy. Alexa has been a part of various exhibitions, performances, and residencies, working in cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Berlin, London, and Rio De Janeiro. She is a trained modern dancer, influenced by Horton technique learned at the San Francisco Dance Center. Alexa studied social theory and media at U.C. Berkeley and communication and rhetoric at Syracuse University. For her MA, she facilitated embodiment workshops inspired by a residency with Dance Exchange (Liz Lerman), and wrote about identity and empathy. Alexa is the founder of Keep it Clear, a collection of art & experiences designed to inspire authenticity and offer tools for self introspection, building connection, and social reflection.

oliviamiaorozco.com / www.alexaeisner.com/