About

By Vanessa Kwan & Theatre Replacement

Speaker A is a public artwork that uses sound as a medium for storytelling, connection (and disconnection), and shared narrative. Experienced through three directional speakers located in the Second + Main breezeway, the work draws on hundreds of stories exploring restlessness, loss and care in the city. The stories fall into three ‘streams’, each broadcasting from a distinct speaker: A: Restless Futures, B: Speculative Pasts, and C: Instructions for Care.

In each, the narratives explore diverse perspectives on what it means to imagine the future, to mourn a loss from the past, and to describe, here in the present, how to care for something you cherish.

Interspersed amongst each stream are occasional and short instructions to encourage attention to the present moment.

Texts were written by 14 different writers, and have been programmed to play in randomized orders — each time you experience them, the accumulated narrative will be unique. The speakers are activated by sensors which detect when a person is standing underneath them, and are active between the hours of 7pm and 7am.

Speaker A is installed on the unceded territories and ancestral lands of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) First Nations. We gratefully acknowledge the Indigenous stewardship of this land, past, present and future.

This website was set up for listeners to experience the work via audio stream, replicating the work’s algorithm on site. We have also made some downloadable audio tracks of each speaker as well as PDF transcripts, so you can experience the work whenever or wherever you would like; on a walk in the city or at home.

Commissioned by Create Properties for the City of Vancouver Public Art Program. Installed September 2021.

Concept

Vanessa Kwan and Theatre Replacement (Maiko Yamamoto and James Long)

Writers

Lorna Brown / Tim Carlson / Justine A. Chambers / Amber Dawn / Aryo Khakpour / Amiel Gladstone / Hiromi Goto / Whess Harman / Vanessa Kwan / James Long / Lili Robinson / Faith Sparrow-Crawford / Cease Wyss / Maiko Yamamoto

Sound Design

Antoine Bédard

Programming Design

Remy Siu

Technical Director

Colin Griffiths

Project Manager

Corbin Murdoch

Featured Voices

Norman Armour / Lorna Brown / Amber Dawn / Fumiko Enns / Whess Harman / Aryo Khakpour / Vanessa Kwan / Lee Su-Feh / James Long / Lili Robinson / Donna Soares / Quelemia Sparrow / Gina Stockdale / Conor Wylie / Maiko Yamamoto