X-RATED PLANET confronts stigmatized experiences and challenge cultural perception and the demonization of perpetrator/victim binary that keeps sexual trauma a hidden epidemic. With an emphasis on healing, radical joy, and victory of the human spirit, this provocative work seeks to connect our local community while globalizing awareness.

Artistic director Nicole Klaymoon’s signature approach to choreography emphasizes the sacred practice of voicing stories of trauma to reclaim power in this original work of documentary hip-hop dance theater that engages a critical conversation conversation around the root cause of sexual violence and the myriad journeys to healing.

Groundwork for X RATED PLANET also included a collaboration with Sonya Shah, director of The Ahimsa Collective (TAC), a restorative justice organization focusing on alternative ways to address violence and heal trauma. Klaymoon joined TAC’s work with incarcerated persons, participating in restorative justice circles that put an emphasis on understanding the root causes of sexual assault. This partnership supported Klaymoon in unpacking the comlex root causes that keep sexual trauma hidden in our communities, and put emphasis on the multitudinous dimensions of healing in community.

This work received national support for a world premiere commissioned by YBCA. In 2019/20, EP performed work-in-progress showings at ODC, YBCA and Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, as well as other national venues. Through collaboration with TAC, EP participated in restorative justice circles and performed excerpts of X inside two state prisons in the Central Valley, connecting with 60 men serving time for committing sexual harm.