"Red Death" KC Stage Review by Detailer

A very strong performance of an effectively creative adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Masque of the Red Death.

I am not an opera fan, but this presentation could convert me. First, it’s in English, it began with the spoken word, and the company gave out printed lyrics for those of us not used to listening to opera.

But the printed words weren’t needed to understand Nathan Granner. His voice was strong and clear, and his character was compelling. Gorgeous singing. That alone was worth the time.

Devon Barnes had a lovely voice when singing low and soft, but some of her higher sections had a piercing quality to me. Her physical reactions, particularly to the Uninvited Guest, were emotionally effective. Her acting came across as truthful, the emotions coming from within.

Bryan Colley’s libretto and Daniel Doss’s music were quite impressive. They captured the story succinctly, getting us in the spirit, enjoying the characters, and building to the climax. The entertainment at the ball provided emotional variety, and gave the individual dancers a moment in the spotlight, which they deserved. Michalis Koutsoupides accompanied with just the right volume, not drowning out the voices as too often happens in musical productions.

Tara Varney’s direction and Amy Hurrelbrink’s choreography created a powerful experience. The movement was natural, provided a variety of stage pictures that evoked emotion and added visual interest, and covered the audience well. The dancing enhanced the mood and the story, and it gave a fascinating visual behind Nathan’s powerful singing. Dancers Chelsea Anglemyer, Josh Atkins, Amy Hurrelbrink, Tyler Parsons, and Tiffany Powell blended beautifully as an ensemble, and also embodied unique personalities. They listened actively and carried out business that made the scenes realistic without pulling focus. The choreography allowed each of them moments to be featured. At one point their frantic, almost jerky, movements gave the impression of many more dancers than there were. This was an effective contrast to the fluidly slow movements, particularly when Coleman Crenshaw as the Uninvited Guest drew attention merely by his intense stage presence.

Bryan Colley designed a sparse setting that allowed Shane Rowse’s lighting to set the mood. One window lighted in red in one corner, a white-lighted clock in the diagonal corner, a bench with just enough props to give the dancers realistic business on one side and allow them ways to create pictures on different levels—that was perfect to set the tone and give space for the story to unfold. The patterned lighting changes were very effective, and the white light always pinpointed the main action. Tara Varney punched the ending with an evocative image.

read the review at KC Stage

"Red Death" KCUR Interview by Julie Denesha

Edgar Allen Poe's 1842 short story "The Masque of the Red Death" serves as the inspiration for a new opera called "Red Death" that premieres next week in Kansas City, Mo. The opera will be part of the KC Fringe Festival. With music composed by Daniel Doss and a libretto by Bryan Colley, it follows Prince Prospero (played by Nathan Granner) as he attempts to escape a plague raging outside the castle walls.

Interview highlights:  

On a "zany" Prospero
"I am singing the role of Prospero in the "Red Death,'" says tenor Nathan Granner. "Prospero is a little zany, but also very brainy and fun. So there is the zany part that’s like, 'Let's have a party.' We’re going to lock the doors. No one gets in. No one gets out. And also, the red death doesn’t get in."

"So he thinks that he has it all worked out," says Granner. "And then, by of course, the end of the opera he finds that he is entirely wrong. (laughs) Just wrong. And he has to face his own mortality."

On the question: What does Edgar Allen Poe sound like?
"It’s fascinating to think about what does Edgar Allen Poe sound like? Or, what do the color of his words sound like?" says Daniel Doss, composer of "Red Death." "So that’s the fun part as a composer is taking the text that is on the page and then thinking, 'Ok, what would this sound like in music?'"

"It’s fun when in a moment the emotion changes very rapidly and it goes into something else and then that sounds like this and it is a fascinating thing," Doss says. "The music that you are creating can represent so many different emotions."

On the folly of a man trying to avoid death
"A lot of people will simply see it as a class issue where it’s rich against the poor," says librettist Bryan Colley, a screenwriter and playwright. "And it’s the rich people thinking that their wealth can protect them from death and that’s a very valid way to view the story, but to me it was more about the whole folly of man trying to avoid death."

On the surprise of a joyful opera
"I am surprised how full of life and how joyful the whole thing is going to be when it’s finally done," Colley says. "It’s like, even though the text really dwells on death, the whole performance of it is so lively and fun and beautiful. It’s all about how great life is."

listen at KCUR

Jupiter Kansas Projection Art at Union Station

Short notice but exciting news! 

I will be doing a show of my projection art on the Union Station Extreme Screen at the KC Fringe Festival Visual Arts Launch on Sunday, July 13 from 2-4pm. 

Come and see prints of my work on display, vote for me in the Fringe Prize Invitational, and then see my work projected on the giant Extreme Screen. 

For those that don't know, my work is painted onto 35mm glass slides and is designed to be projected on a big screen, so I'm excited to be showing my art on one of the biggest screens in town. 

There will be other cool events happening that day, including Tweet Rain by VML. And it's all free! See you there.

Rehearsing "Red Death"

"There's no picture on the box to guide us in this process."

Tara Varney has written up a great blog post about directing Red Death.

Project Playwright Round 1, Scene 1

This is the first scene I wrote for Project Playwright back in 2012. I had one night from 8pm to 8am to write the script, then the actors and director had from 8am to 8pm to memorize and rehearse everything before the performance. It was a lot of fun, and this was the winning play that night (those are the judges sitting in the front row).