Even casual readers of The Happiest Medium know that when it comes to Company XIV and Austin McCormick I am reduced to a screaming fan-girl.  I am older, of course -not a girl, so my screaming is done on the inside (most of the time), but when it comes to this neo-baroque dance ensemble everything about them makes my heart race, my temperature elevate and my eyes tear up. Every time I walk through the doors of the theatre at Bond Street I shiver with antici ————————-pation about what will greet me – for here I have seen the most dazzling pieces of multi-media theatre I have ever experienced.  EVER.

This week Company XIV has been holding a workshop where Austin McCormick, Laura Careless and guest instructors have been showing gifted dancers the Company XIV way.   I will be moderating a discussion with Austin from 1.15pm-3pm tomorrow, Friday, March 9 at the Company XIV studio at 303 Bond Street, Brooklyn. If you’re free, come on down.  If you’re busy – break your plans.  Because after you read this, you’ll want to see this man in person.

I was lucky enough to be able to sit in on the workshop Tuesday afternoon and even though I was there for hours the time flew and my mind raced as I was captivated by what I saw unfold before me.  This opportunity was like a dream come true – akin to (I can only imagine) being able to go to spring training if you love baseball.  It’s watching your idol, your hero, behind the curtain, in the process of creating magic in a way that few ever get to experience.

I wish I could spend every day with Laura Careless and Austin McCormick.  Theirs is a world so opposite of mine – the world of breathing, movement, communing with your core – yourself, your space.  My world is about sitting, observing and then writing — hoping that my words adequately translate what I’ve experienced in a way that tantalized the readers.  And even though I meet dozens of people doing what I do, and even though I am part of a community and a team, it is rare that my actual work involves anyone other than me.

For anyone who has ever seen a Company XIV show there can be no question —  there is an energy, a type of spell that falls over the space where they dance, binding performers to audience.  McCormick (who conceives, directs and choreographs all his shows) blends eroticism with beauty, each movement somehow conveying ecstasy and anguish at the same time. It’s bitter and sweet – it’s longing and loss wrapped in joy and celebration.  Every time. Every time.

Very often when you meet your heroes they are so much less in person than they are from afar. They disappoint by being less spectacular up close – less of the magical creatures  you see from your seat in the dark.  Not so the members of Company XIV. Laura Careless, Sean Gannon and Austin McCormick are gorgeous in person – and I don’t mean on the spectrum of beauty, though they have that as well.  They are gorgeous because they shine with talent, with energy, with enthusiasm for what they do, and the eagerness to share it.  They glow with vitality, they glimmer with the fire that comes from doing what you love to do, and doing it well every time. They are warm, welcoming … they capture you with their spirit in person as much as they do from the stage.

On Tuesday I took my spot and first watched Laura Careless teach a class. I see something I can hardly put into words begin to happen; her class is beautiful and smooth, with moments of sudden release,  all done in this almost reverent environment of Austin’s studio/performance space.  The ambiance is as captivating as the class, beautiful old chandeliers light the room, coupled with natural daylight streaming in through the skylight.  The class takes place amid what’s left of the Snow White show I saw just a short while ago – a silver tree, glowing orbs of light.  It is both a dramatic effect and yet completely commonplace, for this (as I said) is 303 Bond street where everything is stunning.

I watch Laura’s class – her gestures are free, gorgeous, wild.  There was falling to the floor and springing to the feet, bouncing, twirling; with movements which students were interpreting  in their own style – some open and unrestrained, some tight and precise, but somehow all fitting together and looking amazing.

Laura ended her class with a meditation, one where each student was guided to thank their body for allowing it to give so much.  This simple gesture took my breath away; we often don’t thank ourselves for our own talents, we often don’t recognize what we do for ourselves, the gift we give ourselves.   And of course this gave me a moment to silently thank these dancers for giving me so much as well; perhaps they felt my thanks, perhaps they only felt the energy that increased in the room.

There was a break, but dancers dance.  Even between dancing, they dance.  They may not even know they do it, but dancers always dance.  I love that.

Up next was Austin’s workshop and here’s where I got to watch the master at work.

I work with words.  Words are fixed and I know what to expect from them, although I am often surprised by how a subtle pairing or combination will shade the meaning, giving a nuance I didn’t expect.  I love to play with words and find that sweet spot.   Austin McCormick has something  much more amazing and organic to work with of course, and because human beings are living and breathing and moving, they can contribute to his internal vision.  Watching Austin as he watched his vision come alive was an experience I’ll never forget.

He is sure and precise but completely at ease.  This is his element, there is no hesitation, no second guessing, no frustration.  With the help of  Laura  they take the dancers through the routine slowly at first. At times it’s so exquisite that it’s like hearing a word whispered slowly in French.  Keep in mind, this isn’t a dance class, this is a true workshop: a place where ridiculously talented people are learning the XIV way.  So I shouldn’t be astonished at how quickly the dancers pick up the spellbinding choreography, but I am.

It’s wonderful to be able to see how these pieces come to life, to see Laura talk through the movements alongside Austin.  She speaks automatically and without hesitation. She says things like “on your hands, BAM!, thread your knee, roll back, extend back with arch” She speaks with as much ease and grace as Olivier recited Shakespeare … “Slip, cross, step, grab leg, bring it in, hand to face”.

While I don’t pretend to ever have been a dancer – not even a 3 year old weekend jazz/tap baby – I can’t help but think that Austin has created a language all his own.  I listen as he directs the dancers to move with words like “snippety … to the heart” There’s a deep poetry to it that would put e.e. cummings to shame.  There are words like Ninja Ladies, Picture, Open Heart, Cowabunga. I love how it sounds. I love more how it looks.  I love most how it makes me feel.

Writing this story was easy; surprisingly so – it was as if Austin McCormick, Laura Careless and Sean Gannon had gotten hold of my hands and were choreographing my fingers.  I sat alone, up high in the bleachers, like a fly on the wall, watching these dancers and letting the creativity boomerang around the room, allowing it to somehow capture me in the energy as well.  Like a medium who goes into trance, I watched for hours and when I came home later that night and read what I’d written it was like I was reading my words for the first time.  Which proves my theory.  This  ability Austin McCormick has to create magic transcends dance. It reaches out and embraces, influences, and inspires all manner of artists, be they singers, dancers, actors or writers — of fiction or of fact.

I’ll end with a snippet of a song that was being played in the studio at some point while I was there. Again, simply because dancers dance even when they aren’t dancing, I couldn’t tell if they were on a break or working out a routine.  Of course it didn’t matter … and this song will tell you why:

When I was 12 years old, my father took me to the circus, the greatest show on earth.

There were clowns and elephants and dancing bears

And a beautiful lady in pink tights flew high above our heads.

And as I sat there watching the marvelous spectacle

I had the feeling that something was missing.

I don’t know what, but when it was over,

I said to myself, “Is that all there is to a circus?”

Is that all there is, is that all there is

If that’s all there is my friends, then let’s keep dancing

Let’s break out the booze and have a ball

If that’s all there is

~~~

I leave you once more with a reminder that tomorrow you’ll have a chance to attend the discussion I will be moderating with Austin McCormick 1.15pm-3pm on Friday, March 9 at the Company XIV studio at 303 Bond Street, Brooklyn.

See you there!

Related Posts:

• Company XIV – The Workshop You’ve All Been Waiting For …
• Nutcracker Rouge – The Way The Nutcracker Should Be
• The Fairest Of Them All: Company XIV – Snow White
• The Halloween Plays – Three Bursts Of Fire, Fear And Fantasy
• She’s Mad But She’s Magic: LOVER. MUSE. MOCKINGBIRD. WHORE

If you read THM with any frequency you already know that I am a HUGE fan of Austin McCormick and his amazing Company XIV. What comes out of the 303 Bond Street Theatre is almost impossible to describe – because how can you describe the way your life is changed, over and over again?

The Company is now taking things to the next level with their Workshop (full information after the jump) which will take place March 5-10, 2012. Space is limited so I urge you to take a look at the schedule and see if you can join Austin McCormick, Laura Careless and Sean Gannon who all made this marvelous workshop possible. During the week fantastic instructors will take you through Repertory Classes (know what it feels like to be a Company XIV member), Lucid Body Classes (open to actors as well as dancers) and Gaga Classes (no! NOT Pokerface! This is the movement language developed by Ohad Naharin).

I’m also thrilled that THM will be intimately involved in bringing this Company XIV workshop to you: I’ll be doing an exclusive two-part series on the website and you won’t want to miss it.

I’ll start off a few weeks before the workshop with an in-depth article, then I’ll follow that up with an on-the-scene report. Best of all – I’ll be moderating a panel discussion with Austin McCormick himself (Friday March 9th 1:15 – 3:00). That panel is open to the public and admission is by donation, so give what you can. You won’t want to miss hearing the man himself answering some fantastic questions – I know I can’t wait to hear what he has to say!

So, check out the information below, sign up, mark your calendars … and get ready to have the time of your life with COMPANY XIV!

Company XIV Workshop March 5th-10th, 2012 Company XIV invites you to join us for a week of workshops at our studio at 303 Bond Street, Brooklyn, New York. From March 5th-10th company members, guest teachers and Director and Choreographer Austin McCormick will introduce participants to the Company XIV movement and style through a week of classes designed to hone the specific dance, theatre and stylistic skills featured in the company’s work. Workshop Schedule Monday (March 5th) 10am-11am: Registration (Studio available for warm-up) 11:15am-12:30pm: Gaga  (Bobbi Smith) 12:30pm-1:30pm: Lunch Break 1:30pm-4:30pm: Lucid Body  (Fay Simpson) 5pm-7pm: Repertory/Creation rehearsal with Austin McCormick . Tuesday (March 6th) 9:30am-10am: Studio available for warm-up 10am-12:30pm:Lucid Body  (Fay Simpson) 12:30pm-1:30pm-Lunch Break 1:30pm-3pm: XIV Company Class  (Laura Careless) 3:30pm-7:30pm- Repertory/Creation rehearsal with Austin McCormick . Wednesday (March 7th) 10am-11am: Warm-up/ Registration for open class 11am-12:15pm- Gaga. (Bobbi Smith) 12:15pm-1:30pm: Lunch Break 1:30pm-3pm: XIV Company Class  (Laura Careless) 3:30pm-7pm: Repertory/Creation rehearsal with Austin McCormick . Thursday (March 8th) 9:30am-10am: Studio available for warm-up 10am-12:30pm:Lucid Body. (Fay Simpson) 12:30pm-1:30pm: Lunch Break 1:30pm-3:30pm: XIV Company Class  (Laura Careless) 3:30pm-7pm: Repertory/Creation rehearsal with Austin McCormick . Friday (March 9th) 10am-11am: Warm-up/ Registration for open class 11am-12:15pm: Gaga  (Doug Letheren) 12:15pm-1:15pm: Lunch Break 1:15-3pm: Interview with Austin McCormick 3:30pm-7pm: Repertory/Creation rehearsal with Austin McCormick . Saturday (March 10th) 11am-11:45am: Warm-up/Registration for open class 11:45am-1pm: Gaga. (Doug Letheren) 1pm-2pm: Lunch Break 2pm-6pm: Repertory/Creation rehearsal with Austin McCormick 7pm-8pm: Showing  (Open to public) Class descriptions   Repertory Experience a day-in-the-life of a Company XIV performer with this series of classes with Company XIV Choreographer and Director Austin McCormick! Austin will teach and coach XIV repertory and also create original choreography to give each performer an individualized and educational experience. This series of classes will result in the creation of a piece and culminate in an informal performance for invited guests. Dancers of all backgrounds and actors with a strong sense of their own physicality are encouraged to attend, and all participants must be present for the duration of every session. The Lucid Body class on Monday 3/5 is a mandatory pre-requisite for this class as Austin will be drawing upon vocabulary from the technique.   Lucid Body The Lucid Body technique (www.lucidbody.com) was created by Yale School of Drama Faculty Member and author of “The Lucid Body; A Guide for the Physical Actor” Fay Simpson as a physical training method for actors, and has been invaluable to Company XIV performers as a path to opening the body to the expression of every human potential. Based on the premise that each body holds the potential to experience every human condition, Lucid Body technique is a safe and deep psycho-physical process of introspection, exertion and mental challenge. Classes will build upon each other. The class on Monday 3/5 is a pre-requisite for the Repertory workshop.   Gaga We are honored to host Batsheva Dance Company members Bobbi Smith and Doug Letheren to teach Gaga as part of the Company XIV Workshop. Gaga is the movement language developed by Ohad Naharin throughout his work as a choreographer and Artistic Director of Batsheva Dance Company in Israel (www.batsheva.co.il/en/). Classes (all 1 hr 15) are offered on a single class basis, or as part of the Full Workshop schedule as the emphasis on an instinctive and individual experience of movement is a great preparation for Company XIV work.   Company Class Taught by Company XIV founding member Laura Careless, this class is both an ideal preparation for the repertory class that follows and a well-rounded class in itself. Join XIV dancers for a 1hr 45 class that combines yoga, dance technique and energy work in an approach to movement that is formally structured yet places equal emphasis on sensation. A dance background is recommended for this class, which can be attended on a single class basis as well as part of the Full Workshop schedule. With live music.   Interview and Discussion with Austin McCormick An informal discussion with Company XIV’s Founder, Director and Choreographer moderated by Karen Tortora-Lee, Editor-in-Chief and Founder of the website The Happiest Medium (www.thehappiestmedium.com). Open to the general public and entry by donation.   Class options Registration is required for ALL classes. Space is limited. (Please see below for details on how to register.)   Full Workshop: $300 All classes including participation in studio showing on Saturday 3/10   Repertory Only option: $200 All repertory workshops including pre-requisite Lucid Body class on Monday 3/5 and participation in studio showing on Saturday 3/10   Lucid Body Class Course: $65/$40 for Repertory participants 3 classes with Fay Simpson, creator of the Lucid Body technique.   Single Classes (Gaga and Company Class only): $15   Registration Please email Laura@CompanyXIV.com the following: Name Date of birth Email Phone number Headshot and resume Choice of class option (If open classes, please specify date)

Related Posts:

• Let’s Keep Dancing … At The Company XIV Workshop
• Nutcracker Rouge – The Way The Nutcracker Should Be
• The Halloween Plays – Three Bursts Of Fire, Fear And Fantasy
• The Fairest Of Them All: Company XIV – Snow White
• She’s Mad But She’s Magic: LOVER. MUSE. MOCKINGBIRD. WHORE

Of all the things to be tempted with this holiday season, nothing is so tantalizing as Company XIV’s production of Snow White which lures audiences to 303 Bond Street with all the seduction of an evil queen extending a shiny, beautiful, apple in order to cast a magical spell.  One thing is certain – there is definitely something bewitching the spectators who walk in innocently and emerge 90 minutes later – filled to overflowing with images of exquisiteness and spectacle.  If that’s not magic, I don’t know what is.

The lights are hung, // The wires strung, // The sets are all painted and built
The make-up’s applied // And I’ll say it outright: // The gold you will see is just gilt.
The kingdom and forest is plastic and steel // But the dancing feet are real.

And so begins the narrator’s speech as Jeff Takacs (who, as with all of the Company XIV productions, is responsible for the adaptation of the work, and has written the script) welcomes the audience to Snow White, conceived, choreographed and directed by Austin McCormick. It’s the perfect way to begin a fairytale: with the truth — that all the dazzling bells and whistles which make this show shine are remarkable, but take it all away and you’d still have the amazing dancers, executing the superb steps created by McCormick.  However, between the whirling and the witchery is where the wonder lives.

I have long since left all expectations at the door when it comes to Company XIV and Austin McCormick; the only thing I can be sure of is that the show will be dazzling, delightful and richly textured in a perfect blend of media and styles.  And so it is with Snow White – which immediately beguiles the audience with a Gothic-inspired funeral scene sung beautifully by Lauren Michelle.  What follows is not just dancing but aerial silk, aerial hoop, acrobatics, and mixed media.

What I’ve come to love about McCormick (as a director) is that if a work of his is labeled “family friendly” it does not mean he has diluted his vision for the young ones; if anything, he challenges the wide-eyed tots in a way that invites them to appreciate a world of pure imagination – a world that hides nothing and therefore allows for everything.  Rather than stripping away elements so that children can grasp the story more fully, McCormick actually layers in more complexity so that a younger sensibility is served alongside that of the adults. I envy the children who are growing up with Company XIV as an example of what theatre can be; they are being given memories that will spark them to create amazing things on their own, rather than walk in the footsteps of what they see being churned out by Hollywood in order to sell more happy meals.

This Snow White hasn’t been altered much from the original Brothers Grimm fairy tale – there’s the death of the queen, mourned throughout the land, who leaves behind her sweet little girl with skin as white as snow, hair as black as ebony, and lips as red as roses.  There’s the evil stepmother who is so vain that she can’t go a day without demanding that her magic mirror confirm that she’s the fairest in the land.  There’s the inevitable moment when Snow White (Gracie White) grows into her beauty and outshines the Evil Queen (Laura Careless) prompting the queen to hatch all sorts of plots which include death by hunter (hunter fails), death by suffocating corset (untied by a raven), death by poisoned hair comb (pulled out by a fox) and finally the worst of all – the poisoned apple which sends Snow White into a deep sleep.  Later she is awakened by the charmingest of Princes with a kiss, the two marry and the Evil Queen gets her comeuppance.

Gracie White as Snow White, Ashley Handel and Laura Careless as The Evil Queen

What McCormick has done is changed the focus of the piece; while the title may be “Snow White” the best moments are given to McCormick’s muse and principal dancer, the fantastic Laura Careless, who clearly sinks her teeth into the role of the Evil Queen as deeply as Snow White sinks her teeth into the poisoned apple.  Careless’ full range of talents are on display in this production, not only does she dance through each scene with an awe-inspiring  fervor but she clearly displays a wonderful gift of accents and even humor.  Having watched Ms. Careless over the last few productions I was delighted to see this side emerge – while she never fails to amaze it was wonderful to see her in a role that had so many opportunities to showcase the campier side of her (seemingly limitless) talents.

Of course, leave it to McCormick to have the audience thrilling to the darker side of such an innocent tale.

Gracie White as Snow White (photo by Steven Schreiber)

For her part Gracie White as Snow White is lovely; she has all the charm of an innocent young maiden who seems to never learn that an evil queen is out to get her.  The aerial work she does on the hoop is delicate and elegant and she often seems to defy gravity as she is hoisted and held and dropped before being caught at just the precise moment, all while smiling peacefully.

Of course, there is no one element of the piece that could exist without the other; McCormick has hit on a formula that works and employs a team that does extraordinary things with lighting effects (Gina Scherr), video projections (Corey Tatarczuk) and repeating musical themes.  So talented are they that set designer Zane Pihlstrom even make it snow — beautiful glittering bursts of sparkling snow that flutter and disappear … just like this production soon will.  So get your tickets now and give yourself the best holiday present of all.

~~~

Related Posts:

• She’s Mad But She’s Magic: LOVER. MUSE. MOCKINGBIRD. WHORE
• The Halloween Plays – Three Bursts Of Fire, Fear And Fantasy
• Not Your Father’s Circus: Le Cirque Feerique (The Fairy Circus)
• Let’s Keep Dancing … At The Company XIV Workshop
• Nutcracker Rouge – The Way The Nutcracker Should Be

I’m glad when they arrive and I’m glad when they leave. I’m glad when I hear their heels approaching my door and I’m glad when those heels walk away. I’m glad to fuck. I’m glad to care. And I’m glad when it’s over. And since it’s always either starting or finishing I’m glad most of the time.

– Charles Bukowski

It’s obvious that Austin McCormick’s grasp of creating a theatre experience reaches far beyond what merely happens on stage. The more I attend performances in the Company XIV space at 303 Bond Street in Brooklyn the more I am treated to McCormick’s all-encompassing way of choreographing not only movement but sensation. From the way the space transforms each time into a whole new configuration to the heady red wine that greets you (or bubbly sparking water for those who don’t partake) to the strange set that seems almost unfinished in spots, you know it’s all carefully constructed – nothing haphazard or random ever occurs here – and once the lights go out and the projections appear it all makes sense.  More than sense – it all makes magic.

Laura Careless as the embodiment of Bukowski’s women (photo by Corey Tatarczuk)

Settling down in your seat, drink in hand, you’ll notice there’s a room constructed to the side which you passed on your way in.  It’s an almost 1940s type film noir room – glass panes cloaked in clunky venetian blinds – the old ones that hardly appear in homes anymore, but make such a striking frame for a room forged in the aftermath of too much booze, countless failed love affairs, and an avalanche of evocative poetry.  This room designed by Zane Pihlstrom and offset by Gina Scherr’s hypnotic, dramatic lighting, will later become an area where we can voyeuristically watch the man and his women – be it through the slightly open blinds or aided by several cameras.  Keep looking around and it’s as if the air seems to bear the perfume of resignation as the music curls around you.  “Take a walk on the wild side …” it urges.  Shed your conventions and see what happens on the other side of that wall.

Laura Careless and Jeff Takacs as Charles Bukowski (photo by Corey Tatarczuk)

LOVER. MUSE. MOCKINGBIRD. WHORE begins with the voice of Bukowski himself – strangely familiar … if you’ve heard it even just once you’ll know it immediately.  Soon enough the reigns are taken up by Jeff Takacs who channels Charles Bukowski so thoroughly, so eerily that when he begins to speak the transition is virtually seamless; he is a perfect reflection of an imperfect man.

These women are supposed to come and see me but they never do. There’s the one with the long scar on her belly. There’s the other one who writes poems and phones at 3 a.m. saying, “I love you” …

… begins the litany of woman, all of whom are -or will be- embodied by the exceptionally gifted Laura Careless who not only spends the evening donning different dresses, garters, bras, wigs, shoes and stockings but also different identities all embodied with different natures, vulnerabilities, personalities and dispositions.  Yet ultimately this endless string of women spells the same thing for the man who simultaneously held them in awe as well as in contempt  - Trouble.

All I’ve ever known are pill freaks, alcoholics, whores, ex-prostitutes, madwomen. When one leaves another arrives worse than her predecessor. “Don’t ever bring a whore around,” I tell my few friends, “I’ll fall in love with her.”

To fully embrace what McCormick has created you must first understand the poet Bukowski or, short of that, you should at least understand the poetry of Bukowski.  Which is a rather tall order if you’ve never encountered him before, but well worth it if you have. (If you’re of the “never before” school here’s a great place to start your education).

Laura Careless and Jeff Takacs as Charles Bukowski (photo by Corey Tatarczuk)

An appreciation for Bukowski’s poetry brings with it the realization that joy comes in many forms, sometimes enjoyment comes in the recognition of pure despair.  And no one gave a snapshot into skid row despair the way Bukowski did – his works open up a parallel universe, where – if we dare step into it – we can try on another life which can be treated brutally, carelessly, one that we fold and crease and crumple; one  that takes us out of stability and comfort and into the bottom of a bottle which has been tossed amid the rumpled, stained sheets and forgotten.

Where the disparity (and the genius) between Bukowski’s words and McCormick’s vision occur is that The Poet adored women plural but destroyed woman singular and in an effort to celebrate them in his art he impaled them with each line of text. McCormick, on the other hand, understands that the boundary between magnificence and malignancy is flexible.  It can often be played with, twisted and turned inside out.  So even as Laura Careless is moving – writhing at times, jerking, she herself twisting and turning inside out – her natural agility and grace as she executes McCormick’s intricate gestures bring life to Bukowski’s words in a way that is haunting and unforgettable.  Perhaps in a way that no other medium could capture with as much passion, pathos and power.

Charles Bukowski gained acclaim by proving that poetry didn’t have to be lovely in order to be heartfelt.  By choreographing, staging and directing a dance/theatre meditation around this poetry, McCormick proves that dance doesn’t have to be lovely in order to be heartfelt either.  LOVER. MUSE. MOCKINGBIRD. WHORE is more – heart felt, heart breaking, ground breaking … and one more outstanding achievement from Company XIV.

~~~

.

Related Posts:

• The Fairest Of Them All: Company XIV – Snow White
• The Halloween Plays – Three Bursts Of Fire, Fear And Fantasy
• Not Your Father’s Circus: Le Cirque Feerique (The Fairy Circus)
• Nutcracker Rouge – The Way The Nutcracker Should Be
• Let’s Keep Dancing … At The Company XIV Workshop

These women of the arts hail from different disciplines, but they all have an indomitable spirit and a luminescent spark that makes them amazing human beings who are out there every day, doing amazing work.

Today we continue our series with Brett Umlauf.

The first time I saw Brett she was decked out in a huge red velvet ball gown, had a powdery white wig upon which a black top hat was perched and she was singing along with two other identically dressed women.  Together they were Charites, and they were singing everything from opera to standards to Lady Gaga for Austin McCormick’s take on fairy tales – Le Cirque Féerique.  I found them utterly captivating, versatile and charming so when it came time to have my one year anniversary party I definitely knew I wanted them to perform, and I was thrilled when they accepted.  Soon enough Brett and I kept in touch through various other things she was involved with, most notably the Diva Search produced by Morningside Opera.

As a lifelong devoted fan of Opera with season tickets to the Met, I’m thrilled that I now have a strong connection to the next generation of Opera via the lovely and talented Brett Umlauf.  The more I get to know her, the more I’m continually drawn to her thoughtfulness, her dedication to her craft, and her supreme talent  - the voice that floats so effortlessly from her tiny frame and fills a room with the most glorious, lilting, soaring notes that leave you astonished.  Ahh, if only Brett could sing her answers for us …

Brett Umlauf

Talk to me about being a woman who does what you do- just overall.

What I enjoy most about what I do is learning from my colleagues, male and female. The euphoria that comes from a good musical chemistry, a gratifying artistic collaboration is what I crave in any project. In her poem “The Witch’s Life,” Anne Sexton wrote: “When I was a child / there was an old woman in our neighborhood whom we called The Witch…I think of her sometimes now / and wonder if I am becoming her…Only my books anoint me, / and a few friends, / those who reach into my veins…”
Substitute the word ‘projects’ for ‘books,’ and I feel as though I’m living her poem. As I witness the crone slowly eclipse the maiden in my form, my face, my voice, my figure, my affinities, I notice I wrap a trusted creative circle tighter and tighter around me, those who ‘reach into my veins.’ I have learned to let my gut tell me from whom I can learn the most, and I’m going with that feeling more and more.

Are there days it makes a difference – good or bad?

I’ve never felt that being a woman was the reason I had a good or a bad day doing what I do. Obstacles that everyone faces: time-constraints, self-doubt, budget concerns, limitations of skill-set; these are the things that can make a rehearsal or process or performance feel gnarly, but I’ve never traced these challenges back to being a woman.

Are there barriers you fought against in the past?

No. And here’s where I feel almost guilty. When I have second wave feminist friends attending a performance where I’m blithely glamming it up, Girlie Culture Style, I experience something akin to shame. (But not enough to take off the lipstick and heels!). However, I am keenly aware that it’s on account of *their* efforts that I can honestly say: what barriers?
I try to honor prior generations of women in everything I do, as I am full of gratitude for where and when I live and with whom and to what degree of freedom I am permitted to work and create. We cast Morningside Opera’s recent Handel pastiche ATRA: Ossia, L’amore Ricordato as a lesbian love triangle, the powerful castrato role being sung by a woman and *played* as a woman, i.e., not dressed in pants and a painted on moustache. The director, Minou Arjomand, will be telling you more about that process hopefully very soon.

The men that you come across do they treat you as an equal?

As they should, the men *and* the women I work with treat me in accordance with my skills, professionalism, contribution, talents, etc. But a fair number of projects with which I am involved are women-only. A woman composer friend recently commented to me how much she’s been enjoying the “courtesy, patience and encouragement” she’s found working in our female dynamic, when she’s used to an environment dominated by male energy. I appreciated her pointing that out, as it’s something I probably take for granted, working exclusively with women so often.

Are there some resources you’d like to share that you find particularly helpful as a woman?
I find a lot of wisdom and comfort in the voices of women poets, past and present. Edna St. Vincent Millay, Jane Kenyon, Anne Michaels, Anne Carson, Priscilla Becker… There’s endless free camaraderie out there thanks to these women’s gifts paired with the gift of public libraries.

What’s up next for you, Brett?

SIREN Baroque

A. Come enjoy Charites as we perform works by women poets and composers of the baroque on Wednesday, 13 April 2011 at 1:15p (ARTEK Midtown Concert Series) at Immanuel Lutheran Church; 88th St at Lexington Ave; New York NY
B. Stay tuned for more from SIREN Baroque, a brand new all female ensemble that debuted this month. Photo from our concert at Caffe Vivaldi on the left.
C. Stay tuned for Morningside Opera’s next season and hopefully a feature where director Minou Arjomand and female cast members will reflect on Karen’s questions…

~~~

More about Brett Umlauf
Soprano Brett Umlauf is not only a huge fan of thehappiestmedium.com, but also a founding member of the female early music trio Charites, singer in the all female ensemble SIREN Baroque, co-creator of an educational entertainment about the Swedish rococo poet-composer CM Bellman and both board member and principal artist at Morningside Opera. She’s currently collaborating with composer Kate Soper, mezzo Amber Youell and dancer Laura Careless to re-imagine Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater alongside Soper’s new opera for three female voices. Visit brettumlauf.com for more info and concert dates!

Related Posts:

• Morningside Opera Will Present World Premiere Of Atra, Ossia, L’Amore Ricordato
• Not Your Father’s Circus: Le Cirque Feerique (The Fairy Circus)
• Stabat Mater Fabulosa, Morningside Opera Productions
• Women’s History Month GRAND FINALE: Celebrating Women In The Arts – It Ain’t Over Till The Phat Ladies Sing
• Drink And Be Merry – Diva Search Hit The High Notes

I’m not going to say a word.  First – take a look at this.  Then we’ll talk.

NUTCRACKER ROUGE (Extended Teaser) from Austin McCormick on Vimeo.

Just when you think that an Austin McCormick experience can’t get any more divine, any more sensual, or any more stunningly wicked, he whips up another tray of tempting treats which enthrall and delight you into a dumbfounded trance.  Ahhh, Austin.  You know what you and Company XIV have done to me.  You’ve spoiled me for every other dance company in New York City.  So yes, while others are flocking to (yawn) New York City Ballet to take in another predictable performance of George Balanchine’s “The Nutcracker” or pandering to Tinseltown’s “let’s get another take” and “we’ll fix that in the editing room” Black Swan – those who want the opportunity to have an amazing, mesmerizing, transcendent  night of decadence, dance and debauchery will come to 303 Bond and let their senses be delighted.

David Martinez, Michael Hodge, Laura Careless and Jeff Takacs (photo by Corey Tatarczuk)

Nutcracker Rouge begins with a party, a beautifully set table with lush libations, in a setting that’s draped and lit and designed to entrance.  If you’ve been to the 303 Bond Street theatre before you may, at first, not even recognize it, for it’s been reconfigured to create an entirely different ambiance, and that alone gives those who have been there before a little thrill of the unknown.

Soon enough the party becomes performance art as “guests” (well, the obviously best dressed guests – gorgeously costumed in designs by Zane Pihlstrom) begin to move and dance and further create the illusion.   Suddenly the audience itself become part of the story – acting as the party guests, and the beauty that surrounds you in crystal, wood, velvet and brocade is no longer just a festive pre-show reception but now the actual stage.  The experience is heightened with Gina Scherr’s dramatic lighting design that almost acts as a transporter – and suddenly, under a flurry of bubbles, the full performance space is revealed and you’re escorted to your seat by the loveliest of attendants.

This is a different Nutcracker – one for adults, where the party favors and sweets and confections are for a more developed sensibility – candy is dandy . . . liquor is quicker . . . but a blindfold, a trapeze, a whip, thigh high boots, well – that’s Nutcracker Rouge.  And they’re just getting started.

Company XIV (photo by Steven Schreiber)

Laura Careless and David Martinez (photo by Corey Tatarczuk)

Jeff Takacs as Drosselmeyer takes the reigns (some times even literally) as writer, re-imaginer and host – and leads the audience, as well as his god-daughter Marie-Claire (Laura Careless) through the Kingdom of the Sweets: a land of infinite enchantment, populated by bodies that contort in carnal splendor.  We are lead through the threesomes, foursomes and moresomes that are at once rough and delicate – the scenes that conjure and sate every configuration and predilection.    From a trio of Cherries to the duo of Licorice Boys who are deliciously decked out from their heels to their tiny black thongs and very thorough wax jobs to the sweetness of Turkish Delights, the seduction of chocolate,  the sugar plum who emerges from a cake, women who participate in a frenzied Can Can there is a constant seduction of each other – and of us.

But Nutcracker Rouge is more than just delightful naughtiness – if it were just that you could find this at any burlesque show in the downtown scene and fulfill the same desire for flirty suggestiveness.  No, served up with all this heightened erotica is Austin McCormick’s unparalleled, precise, breathtaking choreography that the exquisite dancers of Company XIV actualize with passion that is far beyond mere titillation.  McCormick and Takacs create a world of fantasy and beauty, but beneath the crisp candy-apple coating lies the definition of uncompromising excellence on the part of everyone involved, and it is this exquisiteness that will truly capture your spirit.

So, leave the kids at home** and come let your senses be dazzled by all that this world has to offer.

~~~

Related Posts:

• The Halloween Plays – Three Bursts Of Fire, Fear And Fantasy
• Not Your Father’s Circus: Le Cirque Feerique (The Fairy Circus)
• Let’s Keep Dancing … At The Company XIV Workshop
• Company XIV – The Workshop You’ve All Been Waiting For …
• The Fairest Of Them All: Company XIV – Snow White

“How delightful are the pleasures of the imagination! In those delectable moments, the whole world is ours; not a single creature resists us, we devastate the world, the means to every crime is ours, and we employ them all, we multiply the horror a hundredfold.”

– Marquis de Sade

The Company XIV ensemble Dénouement—A Murderous Masquerade (Photographer: Corey Tatarczuk)

Company XIV has joined up with Brave New World Repertory Theatre to create a show that, in three acts, covers all the grown-up Halloween thoughts that haunt the recesses of the minds of those too old to go door to door asking for candy on the appointed day.

To step into the space of Company XIV is to surrender yourself to the world that Austin McCormick and his cohorts create.  First act – Dénouement —A Murderous Masquerade – is at once devilish, devious, and delirious – it will beguile you, possess you, and then  -once it’s had its way with you-  will leave you emotionally drained, begging for more.

Taking a cue from the Marquis de Sade, the troupe of dancers play a dangerous game of Russian-roulette, one where in the end  just a single person remains standing.  The passion, betrayal, revenge, jealousy, fear, anticipation and excitement are all played out in a breathless whirlwind of dancing that mixes hatred and love as easily as gin mixes with vermouth to make that perfect martini.

Yet again, when Austin McCormick lets his imagination run wild, it runs straight into a world of intoxication, romance and magic.  Dénouement, however, is crisply tinged with exquisite torture as well – the anxious irrationality of the indulgence that seems doomed to fail before it starts.  To watch a woman dance a twisted dance of mourning that is so raw and powerful as to virtually evoke wailing – or to see a woman who would rather kill her lover than become a spectator to his display of wicked philandering – this is to see the true ghosts that haunt the human soul.  Bathed in the ethereal lighting design of Gina Scherr, the effect becomes so heady that you’d need more senses to fully embrace it all.  As it stands, the five you’ve got will be dazzled and overwhelmed.

With narration delivered by an alluringly well-heeled Jeff Takacs (this is a man who knows how to rock thigh-high patent leather spike boots), you will be bewitched by those who “love much . . . but not for long”.

~~

Chris Caputo (Young Hansel), Scott Voloshin (Witch), and Abigail Drach (Gretel) in Too Much Candy (Photographer: Steve Bartel)

The second of the Halloween Plays begins with candy – Too Much Candy - but soon becomes more about cognitive behavioral therapy.  Seems Hanzel (Stuart Zagnit) had a lousy childhood – he grew up poor and his mommy never hugged him.  Every time he finds himself overcome with memories of the past – something about a witch (Scott Voloshin), something about being abandoned in the woods with his sister Gretel (Abigail Drach) he consumes massive amounts of candy and pours his heart out to a psychiatrist (Claire Beckman) who seems to take more than a passing interest in his life history.

Writer Cynthia Babak has taken an age old tale and given it not just a new twist, but a pat New York twist – children’s story through the lens of shrink’s couch is a Gotham Tale if ever there was one.  Directed cleverly and whimsically by Nell Balaban, Too Much Candy flows well from past horror to present healing – using flashbacks to full effect.  With Chris Caputo echoing as Hansel’s younger self, we’re reminded of how terrifying this bedtime story really is.   Once you revisit it from this side, it’s no wonder this guy’s eating his emotions.

~~

Kevin Hogan, Alvin Hippolyte, and Sean Patterson in Salsa (Photographer: Steve Bartel)

The final play is a rapid fire, funny short about Salsa.  But not just any salsa – no . . . when we come upon this strange little diner on the edge of town, the patrons  are – as so many of us – in search of that perfect heat . . . that heat that will sear you and deliver all that is promised on that bottle.  One thing leads to another and suddenly a little blue bottle appears.  Hotter than the red stuff.  Hotter than the green stuff.  Hot enough to raise demons from the depths.

Although this is the shortest of the pieces, Salsa – written by Greg Kotis and directed by Chip Brookes – carries just as much weight as the other two.  With delicously spicy humor and a tasty payoff, Salsa is just the right condiment to top off this trio of shows.

~~

Related Posts:

• Nutcracker Rouge – The Way The Nutcracker Should Be
• The Fairest Of Them All: Company XIV – Snow White
• She’s Mad But She’s Magic: LOVER. MUSE. MOCKINGBIRD. WHORE
• Not Your Father’s Circus: Le Cirque Feerique (The Fairy Circus)
• Let’s Keep Dancing … At The Company XIV Workshop

Austin McCormick (photo by Cristina Ramirez)

I can count on one hand the men whose talent leave me dazzled – and while they all strike a chord for different reasons they all  have one thing in common: the ability to amaze me in a way that I’ve never experienced before.  Like the first time I heard a Sondheim phrase and had to stand still, or the first time I saw Philip Seymour Hoffman perform live (in True West) and couldn’t remember to breath – that’s how I felt when I saw choreographer Austin McCormick’s Company XIV performing Le Cirque Feerique.  So dazzled was I that I went twice – and am thrilled that – just in time for Halloween – Austin will be bringing another new, dazzling  show that audiences can experience: Dénouement—A Murderous Masquerade.  I had a chance to talk with Austin McCormick about how he swirls magic together time and time again to create pure beauty.

Austin, you’re like no other choreographer I’ve ever seen. You’re the most exciting new talent I’ve had the opportunity to experience! It’s an honor to be able to interview you.  I’ve only seen one of your shows so far, Le Cirque Feerique, but my fellow THM reviewer, Dianna Martin saw Le Serpent Rouge and she was equally dazzled by your choreography, and the entire Company XIV.

At the end of the day, what compels you? What inspires you? What sparks your creativity?

Austin McCormick (photo by Cristina Ramirez)

A.M.: I am ultimately drawn to reimagining classical stories and twisting and contorting them to embody all the things I am interested in. My artistic mission is to unite music, dance, acting, and design to give audiences an incredible and involved theatrical experience. I like blurring genres, mixing and matching, it feels like our world- eclectic and messy. Art has the power to transport us to another time and place while at the same time making old stories brand new and relevant for a new generation of theatre patrons.

How do you go about bringing one of your lavish productions to life? What’s the first step that gets the production rolling?

I spend a lot of time researching for a production…. I like to come into rehearsal with a lot of ideas and jumping off points. I am always astounded at how many ideas it takes to make a compelling show. I have a fabulous design team – Zane Pihlstrom (scenery, costumes) and Gina Scherr (lighting) are great collaborators. There is a lot of coffee in planning the shows. There is also something that happens when you get the cast together in the space that is really exciting. No matter how much you conceptualize a show, it inevitably changes. It is a living, breathing thing that evolves into something that is hopefully larger and more amazing than you could have planned.

Besides amazing talent, all your dancers have a sparkling quality, a sense of mischief combined with a sense of elegance. They are all astonishing. How do you pick your dancers? What is that one quality you look for?

When I audition performers, I look for watch-ability…something that draws me to them. I don’t care about perfect technique or classical lines. I am interested in who they are and what they bring to the table. I am very interested in incorporating their strengths as performers into the productions while also pushing them in exciting new directions. I also like variety in body type…I am not necessarily interested in performers who look like traditional “dancers.”

Do you have a signature move that’s become the hallmark of every production?

I would say my signature is combining a Baroque aesthetic with contemporary movements…and let’s not forget heels and corsets, they are in most of my shows.

Being a Brooklyn gal myself – born and raised – I love that your company is based in Brooklyn. Why did you choose the location on Bond Street?

When I was still a student at Juilliard I looked around New York for the perfect headquarters to hatch this crazy company. The space in Brooklyn allows me flexibility in terms of rehearsal and performance configurations. It was really important to me that Company XIV have a consistent home in which to collaborate and create. The local community in Carroll Gardens has been extremely supportive of Company XIV especially our family friendly works. It is a wonderful place to come to work everyday. We have recently expanded and now have a costume and scenery shop down the street so, Bond Street is bustling with preparations for our upcoming productions.

When you were younger and dreamed of your future, was this how it looked to you?

I always knew that I wanted to choreograph and direct, even as I trained in classical ballet and baroque dance, I knew that I wanted to be on the other side of the spotlight. I have been extremely lucky to have the opportunity to do what I love. It’s a difficult profession and can be quite grueling. Self-producing is not the most glamorous or financially rewarding endeavor in the world but making theatre, opera, dance is what I love to do. My parents are to blame for all of this, they provided the costume box filled with capes, feather boas, and accessories that I used to make shows as a child…Company XIV is what happens when you let a kid run wild with his imagination…Thank you mom and dad.

What is the one story you’re hoping to tell that’s never been told through dance before?

This is the hardest question ever!!!!! I have a million answers…I have been working on an imagined portrait of A Day in the Life of Louis XIV…It is going to be an extravaganza of Baroque dance, opera, theatre and so much more…I am currently making a show for the DUO theatre in Manhattan opening in December that is a Baroque-Burlesque mash-up of The Nutcracker and Little Red Riding Hood for ADULTS.

I just made a Baroque murder mystery masquerade that opens just in time for Halloween at Bond St. I am dying to do a piece inspired by Dangerous Liaisons told through movement. Also, I am developing a solo show for Laura Careless (Company XIV dancer/actress) based on the archetypes in Charles Bukowski’s poetry…I better get to work…

~~~

Don’t forget to catch The Halloween Plays, a co-production of Brave New World Repertory Theatre and Company XIV, which will feature Dénouement—A Murderous Masquerade, a Neo-Baroque murder mystery extravaganza that asks: Who will be the last character left alive?! Choreographed, conceived and directed by Austin McCormick, Company XIV founder.

Related Posts:

• The Halloween Plays – Three Bursts Of Fire, Fear And Fantasy
• Not Your Father’s Circus: Le Cirque Feerique (The Fairy Circus)
• Let’s Keep Dancing … At The Company XIV Workshop
• Company XIV – The Workshop You’ve All Been Waiting For …
• The Fairest Of Them All: Company XIV – Snow White

COMPANY XIV (photo by Cristina Ramirez Hirst)

Can you die from too much beauty?  Probably not.  But if you could, I came close to doing so as I watched Company XIV “A mixed media Neo-Baroque dance-theatre  company” spin  Le Cirque Féerique (The Fairy Circus) into being in front of my dazzled eyes last weekend.  The show consists of a series of fairy tales choreographed and directed by Austin McCormick, written and adapted by Austin McCormick and Jeff Takacs, and conceived by Austin McCormick and Zane Pihlstrom and runs till June 6th.

In an unassuming building on Bond Street in Brooklyn where Company XIV makes their home you will find the most unusual matrix of Music, Mystery, and Magic.  That’s right, I said Brooklyn.  And hold on to your hats, folks, because in the next few paragraphs I’m also going to say things akin to “Frog Prince”, “Madonna”, “Cinderella”, “Carmen”, and “Balloons”.  Yes – it’s THAT kind of show.

First of all, for all you scaredy cats who think you can’t haul your cookies (and your kids, and your kid’s cookies) into Brooklyn to see something unique, unusual, flirty, coquettish and fizzy-fun that still manages to be family-rated I beg you to please just shut up for a second.   Laziness like that is what led to half our youth’s addiction to video games . . . that is when they’re not washing down teenage vampire chronicles with a Justin Bieber chaser.

Company XIV (Photo Cristina Ramirez)

Second of all, this is a show that other shows WISH they could be.   Company XIV whips up a confection so delectable that there’s an actual ache when the show is over.  Like Rumpelstiltskin (whose story they don’t take on, unfortunately) McCormick and company turns straw into gold . . . and satin . . . and things that sparkle and shine and swivel and clink and pop and twirl and thump and sneer and cavort and transcend.

One half of this show fits like a classic Chanel suit that never goes out of style and the other half  fits like that next fabulously hot new phenom about to be birth from Project Runway – so trendy that they’re six minutes away from being on someone’s “five minutes ago” list.  Throw everything you ever imagined Fairy Tales could be into a blender, add a dash of peacock feathers, a shot glass of strawberry milkshake, deck everyone out in wigs, velvet, sequins, opulence, danger, bonbons, and  the essence of Vegas.  Drained it of anything that smacks of tacky and filled it back up with everything that dazzles and you’re only beginning to understand what Le Circque Féerique will do to you.

To paraphrase Lady Gaga – They Left Me Speechless.  And while we’re quoting the Queen of the Disco Stick there’s no better way to watch Little Red Riding Hood get gobbled up by the big bad wolf than to the throbbing beat of Monster (don’t worry, Moms and Dads, the song is warbled by the  Baroque Opera Trio Charities [beautifully bedecked in burgundy ball gowns] so the more salacious words are trilled so sweetly that it might as well be a song about kittens).

So, basically – beautiful dancing, check.  Amazing, mind blowing choreography by Austin McCormick – check.  Children’s favorites like Princess and The Pea (with an Indian flair), The Ugly Duckling, Cinderella (with Madonna’s Like A Prayer carrying it along  . . . right to Sinatra’s “Last Dance”), check.  A ringleader in Jeff Takacs who keeps things rolling along in the form of fast jokes, crazy sight gags, and corny tunes, check.  A trio of lovely singers who can sing Carmen as easily as they can sing top 40 hits – check.  And all those stories you think you know inside out . . . told in a way that turns them, well  . . . inside out. Check and check.

Oh, Company XIV  . . . one last Gaga quote and I’m out: I’m your biggest fan – I’ll follow you until you love me.  Please keep doing shows like this -  and I’ll keep telling everyone one I know to come see you.

Company XIV presents: Le Cirque Féerique from Austin McCormick on Vimeo.

The Company XIV ensemble consists of Marisol Cabrera, Laura Careless, Yeva Glover, Gioia Marchese, Austin McCormick, Davon Rainey and Jeff Takacs. The Charites Baroque Opera Trio includes Brooke Bryant, Brett Umlauf and Amber Youell. The design team consists of Zane Pihlstrom (Set & Costume Design) and Gina Scherr (Lighting Design). Le Cirque Féerique is sponsored by MAC Cosmetics.

~~~

Related Posts:

• Nutcracker Rouge – The Way The Nutcracker Should Be
• The Fairest Of Them All: Company XIV – Snow White
• She’s Mad But She’s Magic: LOVER. MUSE. MOCKINGBIRD. WHORE
• The Halloween Plays – Three Bursts Of Fire, Fear And Fantasy
• Let’s Keep Dancing … At The Company XIV Workshop