As we move toward our
Season at BAM Fisher, we are excited to be collaborating with two talented
artists: Composer Jonathan Melville Pratt and Scenic Designer Ian Trask. Hear
from them, in their own words, about their experience with the Company...
Composer Jonathan
Melville Pratt:
Working with Tiffany Mills
Company on this iteration of The Feast has truly been an enlightening
collaboration and introspective experience. Upon first hearing Tiffany's ideas
for the piece and its four clearly defined sections, and while viewing the
movement in its first stages of conception, i was struck with an impression of
something quite ancient and very human- insidious, innately violent, yet
somehow desperately loving.... reminiscent of the Burroughs quote, "We don't
like the word Vampire round here. We're trying to improve our public image....
Interdependence is the key word. Enlightened Interdependence..." All this
in my mind... all this juxtaposed in a mesmerizing, stark, yet limitless
realm of technology and crafted space. It drew me into a unique yet totally
familiar perspective where I could look with ancient, more human, eyes at some
of the most vicious cycles of modern consumption and hunger, some of which are
very traumatically occurring in my own life. In an attempt to relay what I've
found, I've used my voice, sampled and treated body percussion, 13 specially
created synthesizers (most created from my voice), drum set, african djembe,
hand made wood blocks, metal scraps, hand made shakers, and pencil and mat
board (recorded a sketch i made attempting to rhythmically consume the page in
the given time that the piece was occurring) among many other things. Thanks to
Tiffany for her confidence and inspiring words, and to the dancers and their
beautiful work during this process. And of course to my favorite venue in
brooklyn, BAM.
Scenic designer Ian
Trask:
I have an incredible
amount of respect for Tiffany and her amazing cast of smart and talented
dancers. Fun collaborations like this fuel our passion and creativity as
artists, regardless of what form our art takes.
For this performance, my
responsibility was to infuse paper, an otherwise inert medium, with the tension
and personality necessary to mirror the dynamism of the performers on
stage. Knowing that the source of the paper would greatly impact both the
possible scale and aesthetic, we settled on using books, specifically hundreds
of discarded law books.
Check out his work: