Rima Fand
I am a composer with a deep love of poetry. In my music-writing I strive to connect to the emotional core of poetry – be it textual poetry or visual poetry. I am interested in the way that the abstract ideas and imagery of poetry can be communicated in a powerfully visceral way through music. I have composed songs based on poems over many years, and more recently I have been exploring the visual poetry of puppetry through music.
This interest in the connection between music and poetry extends into my life as a teacher. I conduct workshops in many NYC public schools, in which students explore poetry by creating percussion music.
I also love folklore, and folk music. I am drawn to old folk songs and dances that have the power to reach people in a very direct way. As a composer I often integrate aspects of folk music into my writing. As I create DON CRISTOBAL, BILLY-CLUB MAN I am studying flamenco, and letting my compositions become infused by the rhythmic and melodic elements of this vital music.
Lorca became my favorite poet when I was introduced to his work in 1991. The power of his art captivated me: its passion; its childlike enchantment; its deep musicality; its heart-rending cry; its duende. I made my way through the complete book of his poetry, and began setting these poems to music, as songs.
Since beginning to compose for puppet theater in recent years, I have been compelled by Lorca's puppet plays. I, with my love of folklore, am charmed by the billy-club character who has captured the imaginations of children for centuries. But I am especially drawn to the hidden side of Don Cristobal, to the poetry of his offstage world. It is this exploration into the hidden world that most excites me about the piece.
Erin Orr
As a puppet theater maker, my shows have always begun with images, often from dreams. I am interested in playing with how these images, and the characters within them, are framed visually. From far away, what do characters' relationships to their contexts tell you? How does your understanding change when you see them up close and in detail? How can private, internal worlds be revealed visually? I consider graphic novels my greatest inspiration and have worked visually with little or no text. I enjoy designing, building and choreographing visuals, but I have found that the element of meaning forms most successfully when I collaborate with composers, creating music and images simultaneously. Through an equal conversation between multiple modes of expression a story structure emerges that is both directly accessible and original.
In addition to being a puppeteer, I have a parallel career as a storyteller in which I adapt, interpret and perform folklore. I believe that folklore's power lies in the fact that it is an ongoing conversation between multiple tellers and listeners. I see my work creating visual theater in collaboration with composers as an extension of that conversation. It is my goal to create theater that has the visceral resonance of folklore by listening and telling across multiple art forms.
My challenge and joy in the process of making DON CRISTOBAL, BILLY-CLUB MAN is to engage with written text in the same spirit that I engage with dream images, folklore and inspiring music. As Rima and I create images and music in response to the poetic and dramatic material that Lorca offers in his billy-club plays, we are joining the poet in an ongoing conversation with the folk character of Don Cristobal.
