   |
|
|||||
| "Sound of the Sun" is a theatrical installation by visual artist/director
Arthur Maximillian Adair. It is a minimalist production of sight and sound performed
without the use of any formal language by nine actors, nine dancers, eight musicians,
five vocalists, five costume designers, and five visual artists. The aim of the
installation is to put the audience inside the mind of a child flipping through
the pages of an over-sized illustrated children's book. It is inspired by an
Ancient Aztec Myth that tells the story of a dark sun who has imprisoned the
artists of the world, and a sympathetic moon who calls upon the wind to help
free them. The story is enhanced upon by other World Mythologies concerning creation,
such as the Myan Prophecy of the White Buffalo, The Garden of Eden, and the Discovery
of Thebes. The structure of the installation is informed by elements of ritual
and storytelling. The experiment behind "Sound of the Sun" relates directly to mass collaboration, storytelling, and the exploration of the process of creating contemporary theater in New York City. It assembles a large, artistically and culturally, diverse company of established and aspiring artists from Colombia, Mexico, Israel, Japan, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, Jamaica, the United States and even Long Island, focuses around a simple story, and then isolates various elements of theatre (sound, movement, music, vocalization, acting, costuming, set and lighting design) by assigning and informing each group with a different aspect of the story and/or structure. The intent is to create a complex living mosaic of sight and sound that translates and supports a clear storyline, while maintaining a visually and aurally stimulating environment. Arthur Maximillian Adair has worked as an underground installation artist/producer for the International Multi-Media Art collective, formerly known as Wanderlust, which has hosted events, happenings, and parties throughout Manhattan, Williamsburg, Greenpoint, and DUMBO. He has collaborated with such groups as Blackkat, Ransom Corp., TeatroBenzina, and John Sullivan Productions. Most notably, he was co-creator of the Tuesday Night Hookah Lounge at Liquids in the East Village, which is now in its fourth year of existence. As a theatrical artist, he works as a resident technician at La MaMa, and is a seasoned performer who has appeared in Andrei Serban and Liz Swados' landmark "Fragments of a Greek Trilogy" ('99 production NYC and European Tour) and in Ellen Stewart's 2001 production of "Seven Against Thebes" (2001 NYC and Eastern European Tour). NY TheatreWire Review February 2, 2002 by Martin Denton "Everyone I know who has seen Sound of the Sun has formed an entirely different impression of what it is. This confirms my own view of the piece, which is that it is very abstract and very good: it engages all of your senses and manages to get under your skin. There's plenty that you won't respond to here, but there's equally plenty that you will adore. Creator/director Arthur Maximillian Adair calls it a "theatrical installation" and I'm not sure I can find a better descriptor. The Club space upstairs at La MaMa has been transformed into a mammoth, free-wheeling playing area—stage at both ends plus runways along the side walls, with the show's central property, a guitar case filled with dirt, smack in the middle of the floor. Rows of benches are provided for the audience to sit on, but almost as an afterthought: we exist amidst this theatre event quite palpably, with actors, dancers, and musicians never more than a foot or two away from us (and sometimes closer than that). Sound of the Sun is ninety continuous minutes of performance. Six actors costumed as clowns mime the birth of mankind; a six-member chorus, shrouded in white, loom as spirits (ghosts?), commenting visually and aurally though without traditional language; six dancers channel energy in the form of ritualized movement drawn, I believe, from various cultures and historical moments around the globe. Soloists include the remarkable Federico Restrepo, who is commandingly potent as "The Wind"; Saria Young, a contemporary tapper who circumnavigates the space impressively more than once; Eugene the Poogene, arresting as "The Sun"; and Denise Greber and Evealeena Dann, both magnificently costumed and visually interesting as "The Woman" and "The Moon." I know that Sound of the Sun has a narrative, but I have to tell you that it didn't signify much to me. What I loved about the piece was the connection of actors with audience and contemporary theatre with traditional ritual. The company hails from nearly a dozen different countries, and at least that many are represented in the music and dance that drives this show. Sound of the Sun reminded me that the rhythms of Native American, Near Eastern, South Asian, Japanese, and many other cultures live on in today's hip-hop. Here's a show that teaches us what we too often forget, that the humans who share this planet have an awful lot in common. " SOUND OF THE SUN ITALIAN TOUR - AUGUST 2002In Association with QTeatro and La MaMa Umbria International  SOUND OF THE SUN - Civita di Bagnoregio with QTeatro photo by Claudia de la Cabada |
||||||
| 2002 page | ||||||