When InLight returns to Richmond this weekend, it won’t just illuminate Abner Clay Park, it’ll transform it into another universe. This Friday and Saturday nights, from 7 to 11 p.m., 1708 Gallery presents Super!Giant!Jump!Star!, a two-night celebration of light, sound, and movement centered entirely on one artist: George Ferrandi.
For the first time in its 18 year history, InLight will center on a single project rather than a collection of works. George Ferrandi’s Jump!Star is a sprawling, interdisciplinary collaboration built around one imaginative question: What happens when our North Star changes?
“This is the first time InLight has ever focused on one artist’s project,” said Emily Smith, Executive Director of 1708 Gallery. “It’s a really special opportunity to bring something this expansive and strange to Richmond. It’s more performance-heavy than past years, and it’s about creating this shared experience, something that feels cosmic and local at the same time.”
She added, “The earth wobbles on its axis every 26,000 years, so the North Star changes, but we’re still here, figuring out what that means. That’s what this project celebrates: change, continuity, and the rituals that connect us across time.”
A Universe Years in the Making
The story behind Jump!Star is as dramatic as its concept. Originally developed for a Kansas music festival with the Kansas City Orchestra, the project was set to premiere years ago until disaster struck.
“The night before the performance, a literal tornado came through the fairgrounds,” Smith explained. “It damaged almost everything except the tent where the sculptures were stored. The paper sculptures were completely unharmed, which feels almost mythic at this point.”
Ferrandi’s large-scale illuminated paper sculptures, each representing one of the 11 or 12 stars that will one day replace Polaris, were placed in storage after that storm. Then came the pandemic, which stalled the project again.
“When George brought five of the sculptures to 1708 last fall, we thought it would just be a small exhibition,” Smith said. “But once we learned that the full project had never actually been realized, and that she was planning to retire the sculptures, we decided to do the whole thing here. It felt like Richmond was the right place to finally bring it to life.”
A Celestial Stage in Jackson Ward
Abner Clay Park, located at 200 W. Clay Street in Jackson Ward, will serve as the stage for this cosmic debut. The site itself feels fitting: a place where Richmond’s art history, music, and community all converge.
“InLight has always been site-specific,” Smith said. “We’ve done it on the riverfront, in Chimborazo Park, at Bryan Park. This year is different because the work itself isn’t responding to the site, it’s creating a world of its own. Abner Clay will become this galaxy of light and sound.”
For InLight 2025, 1708 Gallery has partnered with the Richmond Symphony to present the world premiere of Jherek Bischoff’s original symphony for Jump!Star.
Other performances include:
- Pre-recorded original music by Futurelove Sibanda
- Axial Precession Procession with original songs performed live by Mirah, accompanied by Aviva Jaye, with Jherek Bischoff, Curt Sydnor, Keith Willingham, and The United Voices of Ebenezer of Richmond
- Jee Sim’s original North Star sound signatures performed live by Jherek Bischoff, Aviva Jaye, Curt Sydnor, Keith Willingham, and Chrystine Rayburn, and called by Virginia Varland in The People’s Dance Experiment
- A Traditional Barn Dance with music by Floorplay, also called by Virginia Varland
“People should really look at the schedule and plan to be there for the performances,” Smith added. “It’s not just a walk-through experience, it’s something you want to witness in sequence. The performances, the processions, the community all build on each other.”
The Performances
Friday, October 17
- 7:00 PM — Futurelove Sibanda: Are You Ready?
- 7:05 PM — World Premiere of the Jump!Star Symphony by Jherek Bischoff with The Richmond Symphony
- 7:20 PM — Future North Stars arrive
- 9:15 PM — Axial Precession Procession with Mirah & The United Voices of Ebenezer of Richmond
Saturday, October 18
- 7:00 PM — Futurelove Sibanda: Are You Ready?
- 8:30 PM — Axial Precession Procession (Mirah & The United Voices of Ebenezer)
- 9:00 PM — Traditional Barn Dance
- 9:45 PM — The People’s Dance Experiment
InLight 2025: Super!Giant!Jump!Star!
📅 October 17–18, 2025 | 7–11 PM
📍 Abner Clay Park, 200 W Clay Street, Richmond, VA
🔗 More information and FAQs: 1708gallery.org/inlight
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