“A Worm’s Journey”
MASS MoCA
North Adams, MA | 2025

About the Show

In a mere five days, WHOOP DEE DOO artists collaborated with students (ages 6-12) as part of MASS MoCA’s summer programming to create a show from concept to completion. With the theme of “underground” students created a narrative arc including miners who pick-axed their way through a mysterious cave, revealing a new world of characters including a human-sized bat, rocks that could talk, and more.

Students were guided by WDD artists through MASS MoCA’s permanent collection, taking inspiration from a series of works by James Turrell spanning from the early 60’s to the 2010’s. This contextualization for the students of experiential art expanding their understanding of what was possible in the classroom, it inspired them to experiment with lighting for the show and to create a viewing-window or portal through which the audience watched the live show.

On the 5th day, the workshops culminated in 3 free-live shows for the student’s family, friends, and guardians. Each show was followed by a Q&A for the students to answer questions from the audience such as “what was the hardest part of creating the show” to “how was the bat costume created?”.

WHOOP DEE DOO artists

Sofia Dixon
Jaimie Warren

Collaborating Student Artists

Selin
Mia
Willie
Gareth
Hannah
Pepper
Matlida
Zora
Gilbert
Eleanor
Zachary
Arlo
Raffaele
Lucia
Elsie
Nyla
Anna
Freddie
Quinn
Faye

Extra Special Thanks

Cleo & Abby, our teen “Activators”
Gabriel Sacco
Joe Cook
Lisa Dent