This Is Nowhere

Story

According to urban legend, in 1968 a Halifax organization called The Nowhere Collective attempted to draft a ‘Blueprint’ for a utopian future city, which they hoped to realize by 2018. It never happened. We are continuing their work.

The streets, buildings, public spaces, nooks and crannies of an urban area are the stage. Guided by a phone app, participants search in the present, as they consider the past and witness a series of encounters that evoke possible futures. In the process, they contribute to a new ‘Blueprint,’ unveiled at the culmination of the search.

The 2018 premiere of This is Nowhere in Halifax featured a cast of 40+ actors, two choirs, a group of itinerant dancers and the work of a large team of writers, designers, technicians and site managers. It was one of 200 exceptional projects funded through the Canada Council for the Arts’ New Chapter program.

This is Nowhere was designed to be adapted for other places in collaboration with local artists, citizens and residents. Each iteration contributes to The New Blueprint. The process continued with HereNowThis in 2025. Stay tuned for more.

See the This is Nowhere trailer video here.

Press

“I was one of the people who took part in Zuppa Theatre’s This Is Nowhere performance. Honestly, it was one of the highlights of the year.” – Philip Moscovitch, Halifax Examiner

"Projects like This Is Nowhere will inspire the creation of more bridges, between artists, between communities, between activists, between citizens and members of all three levels of government, and between neighbours.” – Amanda Campbell, The Way I See It

Photos

Woman in elevator. Grandfather and granddaughter in a seniors' centre waiting room. Audience watching a street scene from a pedway. A woman stands next to a vehicle with the door open. Do you get in or not? A woman sits typing on her computer in an entranceway. An audience members passes. A man talks to an audience member in the back of a used clothing store. View through an open door. A man and woman talk at a table inside. A woman prays in a church. An aerial shot of members of the This is Nowhere audience gathered at the end of the performance. An upset woman makes a recording in her apartment. A disgruntled man sits at a table in a pub.