About this Event
Room for Living invites guests to explore what it means to have people who make us feel safe enough to be and become ourselves. The experience draws on the intimacy of a living room, the emotional release of cinema, the vulnerability of live performance, and the restorative power of genuine conversation.
Through a collection of performances and activities, we will examine the relationships that sustain us and the ways comparison and internalized pressure to perform can keep us from experiencing true community.
What does it mean to celebrate someone when we are still waiting for our own opportunity? How do we remain generous without abandoning our boundaries? And what becomes possible when we stop treating our lives, relationships, and creative practices as auditions for belonging?
Together, we will revisit the themes explored throughout Connected Creatives: abundance, resonance, joy, and multicultural honor. We will celebrate the beautiful and complicated realities of friendship and practice the kind of care that allows artists to grow without having to grow alone. All are welcome.
Dress Code:
Pajamas and slippers, blankets & pillows.
Event Outline:
Film | This visual collage blends sound, words, photography, and video to explore what it means to belong. Gathering iconic and unsung cultural moments of vulnerability and creative exchange, we internally reflect on the people and places that make us feel at home.
Guided Meditation | Settle into stillness with a guided meditation accompanied by the resonant tones of singing bowls. Expect grounding, sensory awareness, and reconnection with the self.
Spoken Word Performance | Through concurrent performances inspired by belonging and self-discovery, we further unearth the complicated realities of being human. These performances welcome us all to recognize ourselves in one another and celebrate the courage it takes to live and create authentically.
Panel Conversation | A panel of creatives have an honest conversation about the relationships that sustain us and the competition, comparison, and pressures that can threaten them. We collectively discuss how to navigate rejection, celebrate one another’s success, establish healthy boundaries, and build a creative community where ambition and mutual care can coexist.
- Featuring Kavitha Seker, Christian Williams, Jaclynn Cross, and Melissa Theodore - moderated by Afeni Grace
Impromptu Community Choir | Christian Williams guides the audience through a 3-part choir, singing the chorus of popular, intentional songs. This is a playful, participatory singing experience to mirror the power of harmony. We’ll discover how intentional listening and experimentation can transform a room of strangers into a shared community. No musical experience is necessary, just a willingness to let go and make a little joyful noise together.
Final Words + Friendship Exchange | To close the experience, guests are prompted to give 1-2 friendship bracelets to someone who inspired them in a big and/or small way. Whether you’re honoring someone’s style, appreciating a perspective they shared, or simply feeling drawn to their presence, this simple gesture invites you to connect with intention and carry the spirit of community beyond the theater.
About Connected Creatives
Room for Living is the fifth and final gathering of Connected Creatives, a Charlotte-based event series led by cultural strategist and wellness facilitator , generously sponsored by the City of Charlotte and Charlotte is Creative. The series was created to support artists well-being and help us nourish the symbiosis of personal well-being and a thriving creative ecosystem.
Event venue & nearby stays
The Independent Picture House, 4237 Raleigh Street, Charlotte, United States
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.