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| Wednesday, June 11, 2008 |
| Come Up to Breathe, Come Up to Breathe |
by Mikel Rouse
Where to start here? It's Tuesday and we open The End Of Cinematics tonight at the Bluma Appel. We closed Dennis Cleveland on Sunday night with what may have been the best performance in the history of the piece. Everything worked together seamlessly: the New York and local cast, the TV taping and the sound design. Such a complex work that has to look like a spontaneous affair.
Even as we were completing this run, our crew was over at the Bluma setting up the steel and raising the two level structure that houses the six rear projected screens. Sort of like a small home. The performers perform this "live 3D film in a 12 foot area between the six rear projected screens and the front scrim that doubles as both a see through scrim and a movie screen. The live cameras capture the performers on video "sets" or backdrops that are taken from a film shot in Paris. Through CGI, we removed the people from the original film (which appears in the upper three rear projected screens) so that the performers have matching video backdrops that are photographed and then projected onto the front screen. Whew!  Our carpenter, Brad Hepburn, testing the robotic camera for The End Of Cinematics Sound Designer Chris Ericson grabs a needed rest after loading in The End Of Cinematics
In addition to the three stationary cameras, we have a fly camera and a robotic camera that travels along a track in front of the performers (controlled by our director of photography Richard Connors) capturing moving shots of the performers. It's an amazing set up and by the end of the day yesterday, we had it all set up and running. Projector tests for The End Of Cinematics:
And to make things even more interesting, I accepted the generous offer from Luminato to participate in the Canadian Songbook last night. I got the singers from Cinematics involved and we performed Neil Young's Harvest Moon and Broken Social Scene's Anthems for a Seventeen-Year-Old Girl. What an honor to be included in such great company and to perform in the legendary Massey Hall. I can't say enough good things about the band and the music director Glenn Morley. I'm hoping to be able to work with these musicians again. They were all so kind and generous and the arrangements that they came up with for the two songs were remarkable. Just the right touch.
Now, it's off to our first and only run through before we open. The company is feeling good. Mikel Rouse is a New York-based composer, director, performer and recording artist hailed as “a composer many believe to be the best of his generation.” (NY Times 2002) His works include 25 records, 7 films (including Funding and Music For Minorities), and a trilogy of media operas: Failing Kansas, Dennis Cleveland and The End Of Cinematics. More information is available at www.mikelrouse.com. |
posted by Luminato, Toronto Festival of Arts & Creativity @ 7:13 AM  |
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| Monday, June 9, 2008 |
| Life in these United States |
by Mikel Rouse
We had our first dress rehearsal for Dennis Cleveland on Friday. What a sight. I'm so tempted to post photos of the cast, but I don't want to give up the ghost, so to speak. This was our last dress rehearsal and then we opened on Saturday. I'm still so pleased by the character of this Toronto cast and so grateful for how well everyone is getting along. We've had some minor bumps in the road (to be expected with a show with so many moving parts) that involved a lot of waiting around, not unlike a film shoot. Through it all, everyone has remained upbeat and positive.
 Dennis Cleveland Highschool Class of 2008
There are so many factors to keep track of with Dennis Cleveland. Yes, it's a live show that's performed on stage. but it's also an optical and aural illusion. And we're upping the bombardment of TV by having multiple views on the television monitors so you have multiple perspectives of the show. The video crew and camera crew are constantly trying to capture shots of the performers and audience to create a visual field to accompany the music. There are so many factors that have to combine correctly for the entire effect to work. It looks like a free-for-all but it's anything but. It's a very structured work from beginning to end.
We got all the monitors in the air yesterday and I can't believe what a wonderful job James Cameron has done with this set. Very simple and elegant but so perfectly suited to the scale of the room. And Jason Boyd, our lighting designer, has managed to highlight the best elements of the design. When I saw the set lit for the first time I was blown away.
 Sound Check for Dennis Cleveland
In a lot of ways, Chris Ericson, our sound designer, has the toughest job. I've been working with Chris since 2005 when we first build The End Of Cinematics together. He never fails to knock me out, and this show is no exception. But his job is made even more complex by the need to integrate the talk show hosts roaming mic with the other amplified elements of the show. We'll know we've got it down when he brings out his framed photo of Chuck Norris.
Mikel Rouse is a New York-based composer, director, performer and recording artist hailed as “a composer many believe to be the best of his generation.” (NY Times 2002) His works include 25 records, 7 films (including Funding and Music For Minorities), and a trilogy of media operas: Failing Kansas, Dennis Cleveland and The End Of Cinematics. More information is available at www.mikelrouse.com. |
| posted by Luminato, Toronto Festival of Arts & Creativity @ 7:24 AM |
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| Thursday, June 5, 2008 |
| If You Don't Love Me the Way I am Then You Can Go! |
by Mikel Rouse
After over a year and a half of planning, we're finally all here in Toronto for the second Luminato festival. We're in the process of building the first of three shows in a trilogy of modern media operas that span over 15 years. We've been lucky to tour these pieces all over the world, but this is the highlight: the culmination of years of work; presenting the trilogy in repertory for the first time. Hats off to Luminato for that.
Building the Dennis Cleveland Studio
We're doing the second opera of the trilogy first. It's the talk show opera Dennis Cleveland and it requires considerable effort to build the studio and set. It's also the largest piece in terms of cast and crew. We've got about 25 singers, actors and soloists and a four person camera crew being guided by our video director Jeff Sugg and our director of photography, Richard Connors. We always cast half of the show locally, and the Toronto cast is truly the best ever. They're wonderful in their spirit and talent, and they're bringing a real sense of wonder to the process. Of course, they've been expertly guided by our assistant director Natasha Mytnowych, another face to watch on the Toronto scene.
Video crew for Dennis Cleveland
Rehearsals are going well. We started rehearsing the New York cast and the Toronto cast separately for three weeks and brought them all together for the first time this week. One of the most gratifying things about Dennis Cleveland is the good will and friendship that seems to result from the meeting of so many talented people. We actually had our closing party last night as this was the only night we would be able to have cast and crew all together. By the time we're doing the last show of Dennis Cleveland at the Toronto film School, we'll be loading in the third opera The End Of Cinematics at the Bluma Appel Theater. Then while we're performing The End Of Cinematics, we'll be loading in the first opera and final show of the trilogy, Failing Kansas, at the Factory Theater.
It's amazing to watch so many dedicated people pull together to make all this happen. In some ways it's a logistical nightmare, but this seems to be driving everyone even more. There's something thrilling (and a little scary) about the roller coaster we're on, but it's all coming together. More later, I hope. Mikel Rouse is a New York-based composer, director, performer and recording artist hailed as “a composer many believe to be the best of his generation.” (NY Times 2002) His works include 25 records, 7 films (including Funding and Music For Minorities), and a trilogy of media operas: Failing Kansas, Dennis Cleveland and The End Of Cinematics. More information is available at www.mikelrouse.com. |
| posted by Luminato, Toronto Festival of Arts & Creativity @ 11:07 AM |
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