Amerindians: The Return

AMERINDIANS: the return
Creation, Script, Choreography and Media Concept by Cristina Cortés.
Interdisciplinary collaboration of dance, spoken word, body art and a sound video installation.

AMERINDIANS: the return is a performance-exhibition that explores indigenous memories, history and politics with a contemporary performing and digital multimedia and language.

Cristina Cortes, the author, director, choreographer and originator of the media concept, envisions a future of cross-cultural empowerment in "Amerindians: the return." The piece develops interacting a video installation, objects on stage, choreography inspired and framed within the recreation of "characters", mixing passages between myths, legends and historical events, from the past, to the present and the future. There are composite animated illustrations with still images and video. Movement on stage generates interactive 3D animations, sounds and images on screen. The opposite also occurs: still images on screen, after manipulation, trigger the appearance of live elements and characters on stage. There are three screens and three projectors. A totem is deconstructed and its parts--masks, symbols and costume—will be wore and manipulated by the dancers. The resulting assemblage of movement and images is referred to as "a journey of recovery."

Participating artists include: Illustrations for multimedia by Luis Garay; original music, spoken word and lyrics by Tiokasin Ghosthorse (Lakota/Sioux), John Trudell (Santee/Sioux), Blackfire (Navajo/Dine) and Aztlan Underground (Aztlans/Xicanos); traditional choreography adviser and training by Lance White Magpie (Oglala/ Lakota/Sioux); totem, objects for stage, masks/body-art design by Alessandro Blini-Massiah; sound and final post-production by Alejo Gordillo (Moana Productions); lighting, costumes and stage design by Elaine Benavides and Carlos Alvarez.
A work in progress of this production was offered at Theater for the New City on Memorial Day Weekend as part of its 2007 Lower East Side Festival of the Arts.

To be presented at Theater for the New City January 17 - 20, 2008. Please visit www.theaterforthenewcity.net/amerindians.html for more information and to purchase tickets.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Dance
• Theater
• Amerindians