SOUND/STAGE: Song from the Uproar
SONG FROM THE UPROAR
is a “multimedia chamber opera” …and is like nothing you’ve ever seen.
Marrying intensely rigorous avant classical music from the visionary new composer Missy Mazzoli, with the filmic, aesthetic vision of Stephen Taylor, SONG FROM THE UPROAR is a personal, ecstatic, and immersive response to the life of Isabelle Eberhardt (1877-1904)– an inspiring and little known tale in which the show’s creators found “vibrant and relevant” parallels to their own: to the universal struggles for love and self-discovery in which we all take part.
In her short life of only 27 years — after losing both parents at 20 — Eberhardt managed to produce a substantial volume of writing. Her journals provide a vivid account of the unique and unfettered existence she created for herself, travelling extensively on horseback through Northern African deserts, often disguised as a man.
Librettist Royce Vavrek worked directly with these source texts in creating the lyrics for UPROAR, imbuing the production even further with a profoundly personal quality.
It was originally workshopped at Galapagos Art Space in Brooklyn, NY in 2009, and more recently premiered in full at The Kitchen in spring of 2012. I see a nice long run at BAM in its future…? Or, I hope, some equally lucky venue, so more of us can see and appreciate this incredible collaborative piece of creation.
Other people have: check out this press!
Grey Lady/NYT
Time Out NY
created by composer Missy Mazzoli
and
produced by Beth Morrison Projects
in collaboration with director Gia Forakis, filmmaker Stephen Taylor and librettist Royce Vavrek
conducted by Steven Osgood, featuring Abigail Fischer as the radical historical female figure Isabelle Eberhardt
with NOW Ensemble
and vocalists Tomas Cruz, Kate Maroney, Celine Mogielnicki, Peter Stewart, and Amelia Watkins
[Editor’s Note: New York City is a magical wonderland for creative people. One in which if your eyes and ears are open, and you talk to everyone all the time, you will meet and befriend the most creative, passionate, driven group of individuals. It’s what brings us here.
I had the pleasure to attend a salon given in the home of pianist Lily Friedman, an inimitable 89 years old, who gleams with joy and bursts with the pleasure of sharing the work of world class musicians with her community in this perfect and intimate venue. On this bill were Bryce Kulak, Teresa Tudury, and DC Anderson; in the audience were my old choreographer from highschool, Dixie (Teresa’s cousin! small world!) the composer Du Yun, and the librettist Royce Vavrek, who was a collaborator on this project.
It was like entering into a second Exit Strata parallel universe, one focused on music and performance. We automatically and naturally opened ourselves to each other — you’ll see collaborative pieces and creative salons drawing on our expanded skill set very very soon. Talk about levelling up!]
