Artist Statement

The lighting design of In The Blood, compounds and commiserates with the systems, people, and places that press upon Hester and her family. Often, Hester is at the mercy of the light in the environment; unable to control either the natural light that pours under the bridge, or the artificial light placed beneath it. These forms of light are of two points: the inability to control, and the compression of the space; both of which are reflected in the environment she presides over, the social stigmas attached to her, and the systemic inequity which stands by, uncaring, as all her attempts to pull herself out of poverty prove Sisyphean. The other adults reckon with their own failings during the Confessions, but these are ultimately fleeting moments that they safely step away from as they re-enter their places of privilege and take on the mantles of various oppressors. Meanwhile, Hester’s ultimate fate is led up to by a Confession where she alone is held to account and she alone must bear the weight of her existence.