Float Parade at Vizcaya traces Deering's journey

The Float Participatory Parade at Vizcaya is Saturday, August 4 when the parade travels from the Village to the Bay, retracing Vizcaya’s original owner James Deering’s own journey from agricultural heartland to untamed seascape and conjuring his vision of Vizcaya as a nautical fantasy. Float merges mythic and modern imagery in key sites along the procession route to explore the depths of Vizcaya’s past and present connection to the Sea.

Vizcaya welcomes back New York based Processional Arts Workshop (PAW) for a third year. Building on the successes of Whirl (2016) and Bloom (2017), PAW has created a Float: A Caravel’s Journey, a third Vizcaya-specific performance built and performed by local residents. This performance of the trilogy will explore James Deering’s romance with the sea, and his concept of Vizcaya as a nautical fantasy. Designed as a cumulative procession that connects both sides of Vizcaya, as well as incorporating lanterns from Whirl and Bloom, it will start at twilight in the Village and, like a stream, make its way to the waterfront, growing as it encounters and absorbs lantern into its flow.

The participatory parade was built in a week-long series of public workshops, a hands-on opportunity for people  to work closely with PAW artists Sophia Michahelles and Alex Kahn. 

Participants created lanterns inspired and informed by Vizcaya’s rich history, guided by Michahelles and Kahn on concept and techniques, and collaborate with other participants on all aspects of production. 

Performance tickets for the evening of Saturday August 4 can be purchased here. $10 for adults; $5 for children .