Appalachian Winter
January 2015
The musical theater piece "Appalachian Winter" was a marriage of storytelling, puppetry, cinematics, ecological mythology, and the arc of the heroine's journey, accompanied by original live music and song on a theatrical stage.
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AUDIOCAST
VIDEO
"An ecological, interactive performance cycle with the Appalachian bioregion at its core that encompasses psychological, cultural, and natural history, cosmology, mythology, and the truths of Southern Appalachia. My desire is to raise awareness about the bioregion and our place on the planet, using the common thread of the uniqueness of the seasons of nature in parallel to the “seasons” of a human life, and ultimately to inspire future-visioning around Appalachian cultural, personal, and ecological sustainability, nurturing a deeper sense of meaning, place, and purpose within the audience and the community — all the while fulfilling and feeding myself, others, and the land we love creatively, in our bones and flesh, in our eyes and leaves and minds and ears and hearts."
The Storyline
A woman's descent into psychic darkness follows the cycle of the sun through the winter season with the characters of Bear, Raven, and Moon.
Music, storytelling, dance, video, costumery, theatrics, puppetry, shamanism, and song combine to bring the audience through the midwinter cycle of descent, discovery of inward light, and promise of emergence into spring. This particular performance is one of a series of seasonal performances which create a complete cycle of the year.
In this piece, a singing storyteller narrates the lead character's autumnal loss of love, her inward journey into chaos and winter’s darkness, and her discovery of creativity and light within. Cello, guitar, and regional found-sounds accompany the piece, with video used to co-create and expand the set, story, and backgrounds. The character of the raven, who carries the sun throughout the year, descends to the woman’s house to witness, interface, and provide counterpoint and comedy. The characters dance as songs, music, and video unfold. The audience is invited to deepen the journey by reflecting on their own inward losses, joys, lessons, and hopes.
The greater mission of Appalachian Season is to serve as a bioregional production container that fosters ecocultural awareness, artistic expression, and collective reflection on purpose, place, and identity within Southern Appalachia.
The story continues to unfold in seasonal performances throughout 2015 and beyond.
For musical selections, click here
Performance Times 2015
Thursday, January 22
Friday, January 23
Saturday, January 24
7 pm at The Odditorium in West Asheville
Directions • Fringefest • Tickets
What a success! Please visit the event page on Facebook and leave comments, reviews, and critiques — I would really appreciate your thoughts.