The Harrowing of Hell

Produced by American Theatre of Actors in association with Collectio Musicorum, Inc. Written by Aonymous
Translated & Directed by Jeff Dailey

Nominations: Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role - Connor Chaney; Outstanding Performance Art Production

About American Theatre of Actors
The mission of the American Theatre of Actors is to promote the development of new playwrights, directors and actors, to revive works from the past, and to provide a creative atmosphere in which to work, without the pressures of commercial theatre.

Photos b J. Dailey

About The Harrowing of Hell
Sometime in the 13th century, an anonymous author wrote a short play detailing the events of the Harrowing of Hell, when, after dying, Jesus went to Hell to rescue all the prophets imprisoned there. This play, one of the first ever written in English, was so popular it survives in multiple sources, but it had never been performed in the United States. Newly translated into modern English, the play explains how Jesus vanquished Satan, and then released Adam, Eve, and others from their hellish imprisonment. Also on the program was another medieval play, "The Fall of the Angels," dating from the 14th century, which shows how Satan came to be cast into Hell in the first place, along with a performance of "The Soliloquy of Satan," by the 20th century American poet Elliott Blaine Henderson.

What first attracted you to The Harrowing of Hell?

Connor: I love classical plays, and it's a rare opportunity to work on a piece both classical, and a world debut!

Jeff: The process of translating the original text into modern English and then giving the first performance ever in North America.

What was your favorite part of working on this production?

Connor: Immersing myself in the medieval mindset and attempting to articulate their worldview onstage.

Jeff:  Working with the actors on both the language and the theology of the play.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?

Connor: Wrapping my brain around the rhythm and structure of the language was sometimes very challenging. It's a mode of thinking neither contemporary nor Shakespearean!

Jeff:  Making a 13th Century play accessible to a modern audience.

What was the funniest or most ironic thing that happened during this process?
 

Connor: It turns out dropping a cloth on someone accurately in much more challenging than one might think.

Jeff: God was nominated as Outstanding Actor.





 Did you gain any insight or learn anything new while working on this production?

Connor: I've gained a new appreciation for poetic language, and perhaps permitted myself a little leniency in tackling roles I consider unapproachable (like God).

What did you want the audience to come away with after watching The Harrowing of Hell?

Jeff: An understanding of a different historical time and the theology that was a part of everyone's life back then.

What was it like working with this company of artists?

Connor: I loved the diversity of perspectives and approaches the company brought to the table. I can't remember the last time I've worked with such a differentiated group.

Jeff: They all took a leap of faith to devote weeks of their lives into a production unlike anything they had done before. They agreed to learn not only their lines and blocking, but the tremendous backstory of medieval life and theology.

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?

Connor: This is the first tangible recognition I've received in this city as an actor, and I find that quite gratifying.

Jeff: Recognition that texts from centuries ago still speak to us.

The Female Role Model Project

Produced by Transforma Theatre, Inc.
Created by Tjasa Ferme
Developed with and Directed by Ana Margineanu

Nomination: Outstanding Innovative Design for Projection Design - John J.A. Jannone

About Transforma Theatre, Inc.
Transforma Theatre is a center where art tackles how scientific ideas and metaphysical knowledge about consciousness overlap. We explore the nature of existence and consciousness through science, shamanic rituals, and express them through the creation of multimedia performances. We are pioneering a new form of theatrical expression and developing a close community of artists and scientists instilled with the freedom of thinking and creating in alternative ways.

Photos by Katherine Butler

About The Female Role Model Project
The Female Role Model Project uses EEG headsets live on stage to investigate contemporary gender structures from the perspective of four completely different female identifying devisers sharing their autobiographical stories through a series of interactive games. The Female Role Model Project is a scientifically-enhanced, multimedia piece paired with neuroscience.

What first attracted you to this project?

John: I was interested in using live brain activity to influence the video design: the possibilities are tremendous and we were able to start what I hope will be an ongoing exploration in the video design for this piece.

Tjasa: I have always been fascinated by strong, unusual, independent women who were able to carve their own way in the world and defy the norms. The media’s portrayal of women frustrated me and as a tomboy growing up, I always felt the desire to break the mold. I realized we don’t have enough female role models that would represent freeminded, self-defining, pioneering women reinventing and transcending gender, so we decided to make a show about it.

What was your favorite part of working on this production?

John: It was an incredible team working on this show. Director Ana Margineanu is an exceptional collaborator, as is lighting designer Ayumu Poe Saegusa. Also production manager Jeremy Goren and stage manager Mariah Plante were a dream to work with.

Tjasa: Figuring out the audience participation parts. The show presents two intimate scenes where actors connect with audience members wearing headsets while their brain activity is being projected for everyone to see and interpreted by a cognitive neuroscientist live on stage.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?

John: We were working on a very short development timeline - there was significant software to write - in part because I was interfacing with live brain data, but also because I wanted the whole design to have a uniform quality of liveness, even when brain data was not modulating the imagery. So in addition to creating the design, I was creating a whole software framework to support it.

Tjasa:  Aligning technology with the tempo of the stage was a big challenge.

What was the weirdest part of this production?

Tjasa:  In the last scene the actors are wearing headsets which influence the audio design. The audience-by asking cognitively and emotionally provocative questions-becomes the DJ of our brains.

Did you gain any insight or learn anything new from working on this production?

Photo by Niav Conty

John: I think the software that I developed for this piece in order to make the design flexible enough to respond to real-time brain data is the beginning of a whole new design exploration for me; it's a very flexible base to build from, and I think I'll be able to use it as a starting point for future designs where I want a responsive and flexible structure. It has a lot of image possibilities, from pointillistic to stellar to pop-art to totally abstract. It's a rich territory I'm excited to explore.




What was it like working with Transforma Theatre?

John: I had tremendous freedom to explore the visual ideas I was interested in, and there was a strong sense of trust among the design and production team. We were able to work quickly and intuitively, which is very much my preferred working style.

What did you want the audience to walk away with after watching The Female Role Model Project?

Tjasa: I want to blow their minds and show them a glimpse of what's possible

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?

John: It's an exciting moment for me - I was very pleased with the projection design, as were my collaborators, and it was disappointing that the design was not discussed at length in reviews after the show. I felt it made a significant contribution to the piece, and was a successful and innovative design, so I'm very happy to receive this nomination.

Tjasa: I'm ecstatic, especially because we are just about to start performing at Edinburgh Fringe!

The Awake

The Awake
By Ken Urban
Directed by Adam Fitzgerald
Produced by kef theatrical productions

Nomination: Christian Frederickson is nominated for Outstanding Sound Design

                   Kevin Thomas Garcia Photography

About this Production
The set is on fire. The flood waters are rising. The interrogation is starting. Are we better off asleep? Three strangers - a devoted son, an Eastern European actress and a Canadian man on the run - awaken to discover they are connected by a mysterious corporation. Faced with lives they no longer recognize, they must confront a shifting reality of secrets, strangers and unmarked doors. In a world in which it's easier to close our eyes, Ken Urban's heart-pounding new play asks: Is it time to wake up?

Sound Designer Christian Frederickson talks about how sound can not only influence the world of the play, but in some instances actually help create at world.

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What attracted you to this project?

Christian: This script has huge possibilities for the sound designer. There are quick shifts between the dream realities of the characters and I felt that those would best be realized with sound, especially in a small space like 59E59. Every sound designer wants chances to create the worlds of a play instead of just the usual doorbells and transition music.

What was your favorite part of working on this production?

Christian: I really liked getting in the rehearsal room with the cast to build the skeleton of the design early in the process. I felt that their performance rhythm would be affected by the sound design, so I wanted to make sure they were accustomed to it before tech. I always prefer to be in rehearsal from the beginning so the design can be developed organically throughout the process.

What was the most challenging part of working on this production?

Christian: This was a big show to put in Qlab, with a couple of lengthy, complicated sequences: a flood, a burning building, a secret interrogation center with dogs and nightmare-voiced interrogators. The entire show was challenging, but very rewarding to do.

Dumbo

Dumbo
By Kate Kertez
Directed by Sara Wolkowitz
Produced by Oracle Theatre, Inc.

Nomination:  Kate Kertez is nominated for Outstanding Original Short Script

        Photos by Sergei Burbank

About this Production
A powerful family uses unusual means to protect their reputation after one of their own does the unspeakable. Dumbo was produced as a part of Brooklyn Labyrinth which were three short plays that reimagined the Greek myth of the Minotaur in a modern context.

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What attracted you to this project?

Kate: Edith Hamilton's Mythology was one of my favorite books growing up. I loved reading about larger-than-life characters behaving outrageously, getting swept up in wild love stories, and suffering horrific consequences - it was better than any soap opera on television. So when Ike and Sergei approached me saying they wanted to do a re-imagining of the Minotaur myth, I was all in.

What was your favorite part of working on this production?

Kate: My favorite part of working on the project was collaborating with Ike Rathbone and Sergei Burbank. They brought me on-board this project, and are such skilled playwrights that I was perpetually intimidated by them and terrified that I was going to ruin the show by not rising to their level. Fear is a great motivator, and so being around them and their words pushed me to do better work. Plus, to my great relief, they are also incredibly generous, kind, and funny people.

  

What was the most challenging part of working on this production?

Kate: Unfortunately for me, the production went into rehearsals right after I had left NYC to move to LA. I like sitting in rehearsals, watching things take shape, and then reevaluating my work, and so the challenge was letting that go and trusting the script to hold up on its own.