We Sing, I Sang(Tête à Tête, 15/9/2020; Knaive Theatre Presents: A Digital Lyceum, 29-31/10/2020)
“We sing an old song,
Our memories united
Of our world that die-
I-
I-.”
The Mind journeys across the stars, a harmonious collective consciousness of peoples from a now-lost world. It sings to itself, far more than any individual could be – but, while reflecting on the past, its individual fragments emerge and try to remember what they once were. Drawn into memories of the crisis, the Mind begins to schism and crack.
Amid the strangeness of the COVID-19 pandemic, I got to bring this show to its second and third iteration. It didn't need much changing - as a deliberately minimalist work, the whole thing was already distanced, without huge amounts of contact.
The main change was that my specially-created TTRPG system for building and using the soundworld was much more developed. At Tête à Tête, we made something where we'd already built the soundworld behind the scenes. At Knaive Theatre, the audience joined in the worldbuilding. Both shows were very different, and I'm hoping to move onto the fourth stage, with multiple singers, very soon.
Thanks to everyone at Tête à Tête and Knaive Theatre, and to the wonderful team of Erika Gundesen (Music Director), CN Lester (Singer), and Hannah Gardiner (Violist).
“Opera back in London! And not just opera, but experimental, cutting edge work.”
“as if opera is being reconstructed from its ruins... an elemental and intuitive experience, and a reminder of how much can be achieved with the simplest of elements: bodies in motion, an unamplified voice, and four vibrating strings. In all, this is a truly affecting performance, and certainly a memorable way to return to the theatre after the past few months of lockdown.”