REDCAT Announces a Wide-Ranging International Program of
Contemporary Performing Arts Events for Fall 2015,
and Reveals Highlights of 2016
Highlights include:
Philippe Quesne (France), Joey Arias (NY), Astrid Hadad (Mexico), John Fleck (L.A.), Kristina Wong (L.A.), Irvine Arditti (UK), Red Krayola (L.A.), Missy Mazzoli/Royce Vavrek (NY), Samita Sinha (NY), Michael Pisaro (Germany), Liminar (Mexico), Camille A. Brown and Dancers (NY);
2016: The Wooster Group (NY/World Premiere), Christiane Jatahy (Brazil), TeatroCinema (Chile), Meg Wolfe (L.A./World Premiere)
(Los Angeles, CA) REDCAT, CalArts downtown center for contemporary arts, presents an ambitious international selection of adventurous contemporary performances in its Fall 2015 season, including visiting artists from around the world and throughout the U.S., and new work by influential creative voices based in Los Angeles. REDCAT, (The Roy And Edna Disney/CalArts Theater), will host a wide range of music, theater, dance and multi-media events that give audiences a glimpse at some of the most influential artistic forces in the evolution of the contemporary performing arts.
REDCAT also presents a range of film, gallery presentations and conversations, announced separately. The wide-ranging 13th season at the Frank Gehry-designed center in the Walt Disney Concert Hall, builds on REDCATs mission of encouraging experimentation, discovery and lively civic discourse, keeping up the contemporary tradition of its parent institution, the California Institute of the Arts.
DANCE THEATER MUSIC EVENTS
September 23-25
Philippe Quesne (France): La Mélancolie des Dragons
THEATER. The stage is a beautiful snowy forest. The old Citroën broke down, but the trailer behind it has a rock-and-roll light show that still works. The dogs wander as if they dont care. The beer and potato chips are almost gone Artist and director Philippe Quesne uses brilliant stagecraft and deeply penetrating humor to create theatrical experiences that are both hyper-naturalistic and bizarrely absurd. In La Melancholie des Dragons, a band of longhaired metal heads decide the clearing where they are stranded might be the perfect location for a new amusement park with a heavy metal theme. A helpful stranger and her dog are invited into their crazy world of classic rock, medieval recorders and large inflatable sculptures. With minimal dialogue, Quesne mixes dream and reality, music and language, to celebrate the profound joy and absurdity of life.
Produced by Vivarium Studio (2012). Tour produced by Nanterre-Amandiers, Centre Dramtique National. Presented with support from the Cultural Services of the French Embassy.
WedFri 8:30pm $25$30 [members $20$24]
A great, humorous, deeply human and touching work. Der Standard, Vienna
An unprecedented version of absurdity, both ingenious and hilarious. Der Standaard, Brussels
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September 29
Including a World Premiere
MUSIC. The founder and first violinist of the internationally revered Arditti Quartet is also one of the most prodigious soloists of his generationa supreme virtuoso conveying the full spectrum of contemporary musical expression. Ardittis dazzling all-acoustic solo program features the world premiere of Pulitzer Prize winner Roger Reynolds imagE/violin & imAge/violin (2015), plus performances of Salvatore Sciarrinos Six Caprices (197576), Pierre Boulezs Anthèmes I (1991), Toshio Hosokawas Spell (2010), and additional works by James Dillon, Hilda Paredes, and the late Emmanuel Nunes. Arditti, a recipient of the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize for lifetime achievement, has given the premieres of landmark large-scale compositions written expressly for him by Xenakis, Ferneyhough, Francesconi, Harvey and Pauset, as well as key solo works by Cage and Ferneyhough.
Tue 8:30p $35 [members $28]
“To see Arditti in full flood…is to be left amazed The Telegraph
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October 8-11
Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek: Song From The Uproar
West Coast Premiere Presented with LA Opera
MUSIC. REDCAT and LA Opera present composer Missy Mazzolis Song from The Uproar, a multimedia opera that combines live musical performance and original film. This compelling new work was inspired by the journals of Isabelle Eberhardt (1877-1904), one of the most remarkable women of her era. At the age of 20, she left her life in Switzerland behind for an unfettered existence in the North African desert. Hailed by The New York Times as a visually and aurally ravishing chamber opera a captivating multimedia spectacle, Song from the Uproar immerses the audience in the surreal landscapes of her life: the loss of her family, the thrill of her arrival in Africa and the mystery of her demise.
LA Opera’s presentation of Song from the Uproar at REDCAT is made possible by a generous grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Originally produced by Beth Morrison Projects at The Kitchen in New York City. Song from the Uproar was commissioned in part by Linda & Stuart Nelson and Chris Ahearn and Maria Mayer. Tour produced by Beth Morrison Projects.
ThurSat 8:00pm & Sun 2:00pm
A visually and aurally ravishing chamber opera The New York Times
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October 1617
MUSICTHEATER. In the beautifully theatricalized sonic performance Cipher, intoxicating vocalist Samita Sinha deploys digital devices interwoven with her live singing, which draws on classical Indian forms like raga, thumri, and mantra, mixed with early blues from the American South and Bengali Baul songs with a dose of pop and electronic music. This mix is closely bound to the languages Sinha speaks: Hindi, Urdu, Brajh, Bengali, Sanskrit, Mandarin Chinese, English, and Spanish. Sinhas vocabulary is tarana a genre in Hindustani classical vocal music mixing Persian, Arabic, and Sanskrit syllables said to encode mystical meanings.
Cipher is a National Performance Network (NPN) Creation Fund/Fourth Fund project co-commissioned by REDCAT, Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA), Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University, and Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech and NPN. The Creation Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency). Supported by the NPN Performance Residency Program. For more information: www.npnweb.org.
FriSat 8:30pm $25 [members $20]
Cipher stands among the most mesmerizing performances Ive ever seen. Rather than mash-up, she minimalized, delicately teasing her voice and the elements of the raga form through a vast range of musical territories: the avant garde of Meredith Monk, Joan Le Barbara to the visceral blues of Nina Simone and Betty Lavette. Portland Monthly
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October 18
MUSIC. Connecting the timeless depth of traditional Taiwanese music with the irrepressible exuberance of contemporary global styles, the award-winning ensemble Sheng DongA Moving Soundboasts the otherworldly vocalizing of Mia Hsieh and the ancient timbres of erhu (two-stringed fiddle), zhong ruan (lute), Chinese percussion and Tibetan singing bowls. Founded by Hsieh and Scott Prairie in Taipei in 2001, the group has been featured on NPR and The Discovery Channel, and presented by The Kennedy Center, WOMAD, and numerous other international forums.
Sun 7:00pm $25 [members $20]
One of the most original outfits working in the world music arena today. — National Geographic
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October 22-25
THEATER. Unclassifiable performer John Fleck warms you up for Halloween by re-inventing the gothic horror genre for Halloween in this horrifyingly hysterical tale of taxidermy, transformation and caged creatures. Flecks multi-character solo piece first staged at REDCATs New Original Works Festival is a brilliantly staged screenplay, inspired by classic horror cinema and Freuds Theory of Mind (Id, Ego and Super Ego) all played out on one mans body. Weaving video with theatrical movement and his remarkable vocal qualities, Fleck leads the audience on a journey into a darkly hilarious world.
ThurSat 8:30pm & Sun 7:00pm $20$25 [members $16$20]
“There are gale-force winds with less vigor than John Fleck. The Village Voice
“Irrepressible energy and engaging presence. The New York Times
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October 29- November 1
MUSIC. Spend Halloween and The Day of the Dead with groundbreaking Mexican artist, vocalist and cabaret star Astrid Hadad, described by the The New York Times as “one of the most provocative stage acts since the Weimar Republic was in bloom.” This enigmatic acclaimed cabaret performer is also an historian, social critic and activist, whose unconventional vocal and visual performance style is filled with music dubbed ‘Heavy Nopal’ (after the cactus juice for Tequila) as she combines ranchera, bolero, rumba, rock and jazz featuring extravagant costumes, rather like portable sets, which have become a hallmark of her performances. Hadad draws audiences to stand up in their seats, and in their lives, as she draws from Mexican and Latin-American popular cultures complex social and political realities. This Mexican cultural icon has inherited an uniquely Mexican female surrealism and created her own that pulses with campy humor and irony.
ThurSat 8:30pm & Sun 7:00pm $20$25 [members $16$20]
Astrid Hadad had the effect of a hallucinogen mushroom; she left the audience fascinated and replete. Liberation
Songs turned inside out, performance art, political barbs and clothes so surreal they make Salvador Dalí look like Norman Rockwell The New York Times
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November 3
Akiyama / Eubanks / Kahn / Nakamura
MUSIC. Sure to roil the electroacoustic ether with a mix of free improvisation, noise and experimental electronics, this exciting international collaboration unites four standout sonic innovators for a first-ever U.S. tour. Legendary guitar improviser Tetuzi Akiyama and no-input mixing board hero Toshimaru Nakamura join with the acclaimed electronic music and sound art duo of Bryan Eubanks (saxophone, electronics) and Jason Kahn (drums, percussion) to build up and unspool riveting soundscapes, as the quartet sets out to probe the dimensions of group performance and spontaneous music creation.
Supported by the Japan Foundation through the Performing Arts JAPAN program.
Tue 8:30pm $20 [members $16]
Restless sound, rough-edged and noisy Wonderful live electronic work. Billy Gomberg
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November 7
Presented in conjunction with Hotel Theory exhibition.
Legendary and uncategorizable rock band Red Krayola was launched in 1966 in Houston, Texas. The groups lineup has changed over the years, but Los Angeles artist and composer Mayo Thompson has been a force in the band since the start. This rare appearance focuses on the influential 1976 album Corrected Slogans, ranging from folk ballads and soprano and piano duets, to stripped down rock songs and Sprechstimme. Many songs are arranged for voice and a single instrument, with lyrics that ruminate on theories of class struggle, alienation, historical materialism, and the conditions of advanced industrial societies.
Hotel Theory is supported by an Emily Hall Tremaine Exhibition Award.
Sat 8:30pm $25 [members $20]
“One of the most unusual groups under contract anywhere. Rolling Stone
November 89
THEATERMUSICDANCEMULTIMEDIA.REDCATs quarterly program of new works and works-in-progress highlights new forms of dance, theater, music and multimedia performance in a wide-ranging evening that celebrates the vitality of L.A.s next-generation artists making work for the stage. Funded in part with generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Sun & Mon 8:30pm $15 [members $12]
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November 1215
Kristina Wong The Wong Street Journal
THEATER. Kristina Wongs sharply hilarious solo performance The Wong Street Journal is part psychedelic TED lecture, part amateur hip-hop extravaganza, and part nonsense. On a charmingly crude hand sewn set made from the finest discount felt, the incisive L.A. performer, comedian and Facebook phenom breaks down such complex issues as click bait, global poverty, privilege and economic theory, using uneasy-to-read charts, live hashtag wars, and riveting hand-crafted slideshows. Wong weaves a self-skewering personal narrative with a laugh-out-loud interrogation of America’s legacy on the rest of the world, with a special focus on observations from her recent adventures in Northern Uganda, researching and recording a rap album with local rappers.
The Wong Street Journal is a National Performance Network (NPN) Creation Fund Project co-commissioned by REDCAT, The Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Circuit Network, Miami Light Project, and NPN. The Creation Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
ThurSat 8:30pm & Sun 3:00pm $ 20$25 [members $16$20]
“Fiercely comic the kind of politically focused theater that not only makes you think and question your own preconceptions but also have a great time doing it.
San Francisco Chronicle
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November 18
World Premiere
MUSIC. A central figure in the John Cage-inspired Wandelweiser collective of experimental composers, Michael Pisaro is acclaimed for his meticulous embrace of sound as a material density, across a continuum of composed, incidental and silent forms. Pisaro, performing on guitar, is joined by Joe Panzner (electronics) and Greg Stuart (percussion) for the world premiere of Grounded Cloud, a 20-minute work inspired by a poem by Mei-mei Berssenbrugge. Following intermission is the Los Angeles debut of the hourlong a mist is a collection of points, with pianist Philip Bush playing alongside Panzner and Stuart. Pisaros extensive oeuvre has appeared on Edition Wandelweiser Records, erstwhile records, another timbre, HEM Berlin, and his own imprint, Gravity Wave.
Wed 8:30pm $20 [members $16]
Like many a great piece of music, this work is about coaxing the listener to hear and see the world a bit differently when one next steps outside. Just Outside
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November 19 22
MUSIC. Beloved downtown New York cabaret singer, performance and drag artist Joey Arias incarnates Billie Holiday, celebrating her centennial year with an acclaimed cabaret production he premiered at New Yorks Lincoln Center earlier this year. Dubbed a demigod of the demimonde by Time Out, Arias was last seen at REDCAT in the phantasmagorical Arias With a Twist. He starred as the Mistress of Seduction in Cirque du Soleils hit Zumanity in Las Vegas, and was the youngest-ever member of The Groundlings at 16. His spellbinding portrayal of Holiday, with some wardrobe assistance from fashion designer Thierry Mugler, has been praised internationally, ever since he sang the songs of Lady Day in his legendary hit production Strange Fruit in the early 1990s.
ThurSat 8:30pm & Sun 7:00pm $25$30 [members $20$24]
The shock is not in the imitation of Holidays sound but in the intensity of Mr. Arias feeling. The New Yorker
Arias understands the risks and rewards of playing with fire. The New York Times
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November 24
Neelamjit Dhillon Quartet & Isaura String Quartet: Komagata Maru
MUSIC. Bringing influences from North Indian classical music and jazz into a distinctive contemporary form, this deeply felt nine-part epic of human perseverance reflects on the Komagata Maru Incident of 1914the ordeal imposed on 376 travelers from India, all British subjects, who had chartered a Japanese cargo ship to Canada in contravention of arbitrary laws targeting immigrants from Asia. Conceived by composer and multi-instrumentalist Neelamjit Dhillon to draw out the emotional and psychological resonance of a teachable historical moment, the extraordinary musical landscape of Komagata Maru is realized by a double quartetDhillons group plus the Isaura String Quartetand shaped into a rich, multisensory experience with spoken-word narration and projected archival visuals.
Tue 8:30pm $25 [members $20]
A gorgeous exploration of South Asianinflected jazz.The Georgia Straight
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December 3-6
BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play
DANCE. Winner of a Bessie Award and Doris Duke Artist Award, choreographer Camille A. Brown and her company perform a work which reveals the complexity of carving out a self-defined identity as a black female in urban American culture. Embodying a strong sense of storytelling and theatricality with a mix of African-American dance vernacular including social dancing, double dutch, steppin, tap, Juba, ring shout, and gesture, BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play connects history with contemporary culture in a dialogue and reflection on meaning, understanding and relevancy.
Made possible in part by support from the National Performance Network (NPN) Performance Residency Program. For more information: www.npnweb.org. BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play has received generous support from New England Foundation for the Arts; The Joyce Foundation and DANCECleveland; DANCE/USA’s Engaging Dance Audiences; The MAP Fund; Princess Grace Foundation; The Jerome Foundation; New York State Council on the Arts; New York City Center Fellowship; University of Maryland’s Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, Juniata Presents and Juniata College.
ThurSat 8:30pm & Sun 3:00pm $25$20 [members $20$16]
A joy to behold incredibly inventive and energetic. Belfast Telgraph
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December 11-12
Liminar: Sonido 13: The Music and Legacy of Julián Carrillo
MUSIC. The ensemble Liminar, one of the most accomplished groups in Mexicos roaring creative music scene, presents a special two-night showcase centered on the visionary microtonal oeuvre of Mexican modernist composer Julián Carrillo (18751965). Initially developed around 1900, Carrillos music theory, Sonido 13, was one of the earliest systems in the Western classical tradition to move beyond the 12-note octave. His pioneering microtonality found its first full expression in the landmark Preludio a Colón (1924/25), two versions of which anchor the Liminar program. In addition to several other key pieces dating from the 1920s through the 50s, the lineup features new and recent works, some commissioned by Liminar, that build on Carrillos artistic legacy. They include compositions by Juan Cristóbal Cerrillo, Valeria Jonard, Juan Sebastia´n Lach, Sergio Luque, Liliana Rodriguez and Carlos IturraldeLiminars co-artistic director, with Alexander Bruck and Carmina Escobar.
Fri–Sat 8:30pm $25$20 [members $20$16]
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December 18-19
CalArts Winter Dance
DANCE. The Sharon Disney Lund School of Dance at CalArts presents its annual Winter Dance Concert. This evening of dance features a premiere by CalArts Alum and Beijing Dance Theater Artistic Director Yuanyuan Wang, an exciting work from the repertoire of Los Angelesbased dance company Diavolo, and a premiere by CalArts Dance faculty member Rosanna Gamson.
Fri-Sat 8:30pm $20 [members $16]
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COMING IN 2016
January 28-30, 2016
World Premiere
DANCE. In Meg Wolfes new lushly physical movement work New Faithful Disco, belief is made manifest as energy. A trio of dancerstaisha paggett, Marbles (Rae Shao-Lan), and Wolfefeel it, generate it and remix it as they prepare to take on something big. Love, faith, impermanence? Pleasure? Power? Soul retrieval? A queer-love power-trio wrought with awkwardness and contradictions, New Faithful Disco builds communal energy into an accumulated whirlwind propelled by nature sounds and disco rhythms. Bodies are the conduit: the site of intersections where dances are generated, transferred, translated and recycled in an attempt to remix revolution. Disco opens up time, triggers fading histories and provides a backdrop that frames who we are, now.
New Faithful Disco is a National Performance Network (NPN) Creation Fund Project co-commissioned by REDCAT, Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA), DiverseWorks, Z Space, and NPN. The Creation Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Supported by the NPN Performance Residency Program. For more information: www.npnweb.org.
Meg Wolfe is remarkable…unfettered by physical constraints LA Weekly
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February 3-14, 2016
The Wooster Group: The Room by Harold Pinter
World Premiere
THEATER. Seminal theater ensemble The Wooster Group premieres its production of Harold Pinter’s “The Room.” Directed by Elizabeth LeCompte, the work features performances by Group members and associates Kate Valk, Suzzy Roche, Ari Fliakos, Philip Moore and Scott Renderer. “The Room” is Pinters first play, written in 1957 when he was 27. Londons Sunday Times wrote in a 1958 review that the play makes one stir uneasily in ones shoes, and doubt, for a moment, the comforting solidity of the earth. The new production is part of a multi-year relationship between REDCAT and The Wooster Group, which has made the theater their second home in the U.S.
American theaters most inspired company. The New York Times
“One of The Wooster Groups many superpowers is their ability to flay their source materials until the original bodies of text transform into entirely other beasts. Artforum
Is there nothing The Wooster Group cannot imagine or re-imagine? –The New Yorker
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February 1821
Christiane Jatahy (Brazil): Julia
THEATER. Internationally praised Brazilian author and director Christiane Jatahy expertly negotiates the boundaries between cinema and theater while exploring the reality of Brazils current society in her award winning work Julia, an adaptation of the classic August Strindberg work Miss Julie. With a contemporary lens, Jatahy integrates film technique on stage, to break down boundaries between past and present, actor and character, and reality and fiction to create unusual encounters between actor and audience.
This engagement of Christiane Jatahy is made possible through Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. Funded in part with generous support from the Performing Americas Program of the National Performance Network (NPN) with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs Cultural Exchange International Program, the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). REDCAT is a partner of the National Performance Network (NPN). For more information visit npnweb.org.
Christiane Jatahy is the new voice of Brazilian theater. Julia is innovative theater with a strong cinematic impact. A must see Le Libre, Belgium
Julia updates Strindberg’s text with singularity and pungency, exploring new narrative possibilities in theater. Folha de São Paulo
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March 31April 3
TeatroCinema Historia De Amor (Chile)
MULTIMEDIA-THEATER. Chiles imaginative TeatroCinema ensemble uses 2D and 3D projection effects to create a theatrical environment rich with the grit and imagery of a dark graphic novel, to tell a violent story that destroys the boundaries between domination and submission. Based on the French novel by Régis Jauffret, Historia de Amor is the unflinching portrait of an English teacher who abducts a young woman and turns her into his victim, concubine and mother. TeatroCinema uses striking imagery to fuse virtual and physical worlds, painting a stark, black and white landscape where impulses of humanity are made visible. The visual language of TeatroCinema uses digital backgrounds and compositions, 2D and 3D video footage, and animation, merged with the traditional elements of staging, creating the sensation that the audience is able to instantaneously travel in space and time.
Meticulously choreographed, with stylized freeze frames and shifting perspectives the actors are never an inch out of place, never breaking the spell Financial Times
It was a mixture of visual languages, which turned the theater into an experience that marks a before and after. The risky bet to fuse theater and film, it worked perfectly. El Mercurio, Chile
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OTHER MUSIC EVENTS INCLUDE
Angel City Jazz Festival
September 26
Mark Dresser Quintet & Lisa Mezzacappas Glorious Ravage
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Piano Spheres
October 27 Nadia Shpachenko
January 12 Danny Holt
Individual tickets are now on sale for all 2015 events. Always committed to offering audiences the opportunity to experience new innovative world class voices in the arts, REDCAT continues to ensure that regular ticket prices remain affordable and offers member, student, and community discount programs. Individual tickets can be purchased online at www.redcat.org. Group discounts are available by contacting the Box Offfice at 213-237-2800, or in person at 631 West Second Street, 90012, on the SW corner of the Walt Disney Concert Hall complex (corner of West Second Street and Hope.)
ABOUT REDCAT | THE ROY AND EDNA DISNEY/CALARTS THEATER
REDCAT, CalArts’ downtown center for contemporary arts, presents a dynamic and international mix of innovative visual, performing and media arts year round. Located inside the iconic Walt Disney Concert Hall complex in downtown Los Angeles, REDCAT houses a theater, a gallery space and a lounge. Through performances, exhibitions, screenings, and literary events, REDCAT introduces diverse audiences, students and artists to the most influential developments in the arts from around the world, and gives artists in this region the creative support they need to achieve national and international stature. REDCAT continues the tradition of the California Institute of the Arts, its parent organization, by encouraging experimentation, discovery and lively civic discourse.
GENERAL INFORMATION
For current program and exhibition information call 213-237-2800 or visit www.redcat.org.
Location/Parking: REDCAT is located in downtown Los Angeles inside the Walt Disney Concert Hall complex with a separate entrance at the corner of West 2nd and Hope Streets. Parking is available in the Walt Disney Concert Hall parking structure. $9 event rate or $5 for vehicles entering after 8:00 pm on weekdays.
Street Address: 631 West 2nd Street, Los Angeles CA 90012
THE LOUNGE | Open to the public six days a week, the Lounge is a great place to spend an afternoon or grab a drink pre- and post-performance.
Lounge Hours: TuesdaysFridays from 9am until 8 pm or post-show; Saturdays from noon until 8 pm or post-show; Sundays from noon until 6pm or post-show
THE GALLERY | REDCAT’s Gallery presents five major exhibitions each year, and publishes artist books and catalogues. Admission to the Gallery is FREE.
Gallery Hours: TuesdaysSundays from noon until 6 pm and through intermission
THE THEATER | Tickets for programs held in the theater are available through the REDCAT Box Office, by phone 213-237-2800 or online at www.redcat.org. Group, member, student and CalArts faculty/staff discounts available.
Box Office Hours: TuesdaysSaturday from noon until 6 pm or two hour prior to curtain.
