A Meal

A multi-sensorial live performance: part-ritual, part-celebration, part-installation, and part-dinner by critically acclaimed multidisciplinary artist duo Ximena Garnica and Shige Moriya. Commissioned by HERE and co-produced with LEIMAY, A Meal explores our deep connection with food—where it comes from, what we eat, and who we share it with.

This two and a half hour immersive experience takes you through a series of vignettes across HERE’s building, where you’ll partake in the act of eating together, witness performances by mythological creatures, and encounter offering songs and evocative sound/video movement installations. The layered work features handmade organic tableware, crafted artifacts, and evocative images and dances, all resonating with our post-industrial relationship with food and the Japanese and Colombian roots of the co-creators.

For A Meal, Ximena and Shige bring together new and long-time collaborators to their LEIMAY Ensemble, alongside guest performers, composers, and vocalists.

“Throughout, every detail has been lovingly handcrafted, from the gorgeous, artful costumes to the bespoke dinnerware — all of which present a beguiling vision of merged cultures.” – Interludes (2024)

“At its heart, A Meal builds community around the act of eating; at the conclusion, you may find yourself hugging people who are no longer strangers and exchanging phone numbers. It’s not a passive experience; to get the most out of it, you need to become a participant, just like life itself.” – Mark Rifkin (2024)

“It was absolutely lovely, and the care and devotion the whole piece carries infused into the food and conversation.” – Penelope Ray, No Proscenium (2024)