_Points Of Departure_ Fall 2026

_Points Of Departure_ is a new series of immersive live events celebrating the spectrum of Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture (FMCAC) as a place for innovation and discovery, a personal port of embarkation for its community, and a window on the world. Each program celebrates the vibrant past, present, and future of FMCAC as it charts a course toward its 50th anniversary in 2027. _Points Of Departure_ is curated by Brad Rosenstein, Associate Curator of Public Programs. The series includes three programs: Program 1: _TELL THEM WE WERE HERE_ - Film screening and panel conversation featuring a film by Griff Williams and Keelan Williams that chronicles visual/multidisciplinary artists currently living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area and how they extend the historical legacy of Bay Area creativity, activism, and community. The screening is followed by a panel discussion with director Griff Williams, artists Amy Franceschini and Tucker Nichols, and curator René de Guzman. Program 2: _CIRCUS BY THE BAY_ - Panel conversation and live performances celebrating San Francisco's history as an epicenter of the emerging new American circus in the 1970s. A conversation with leading lights of the Pickle Family Circus and New Pickle Circus, including performer/writer/director Gypsy Snider, trapeze artist/choreographer/director Shana Carroll, clown/writer/teacher Jeff Raz, and artistic director/choreographer Tandy Beal. The program includes rare archival photos and video, and live performances. Program 3: _LIFE ON THE WATER: A REUNION_ - Panel conversation and rare performance video reuniting LIFE ON THE WATER's founding directors Ellen Sebastian Chang, Bill Talen, Leonard Pitt, and Joe Lambert on their former stage for a conversation about the company's groundbreaking work from 1986-1993, which was dedicated to presenting artists who originated their own work and committed to a blend of experimental and traditional stage forms, political statement, and cultural diversity. The program includes never-before-seen archival video of some of LOTW's most celebrated productions.