Thanks again to sweet Lisa (Loo) Pietersma for making my fragmentary (trashy) ideas into poetry!
jTucked up in the mountains is a small-town mythology. It is made of twisted dreams paved in asphalt to the centre of a sacred grove; a re-interpretation of old stories. It is told through bonfires, mud-bogging, crushed beer cans, and cover girl lipstick. The stories, paintings, and spectacles reflect how we see ourselves through the pangs of love, longing, friendship, and boredom.
The show remembers what it was like to grow up in a small community—where cultural codes are invented at random. It examines the idea of complicity through compassion, family, and social ties. It illuminates the secret societies created after dark and the submissive acceptance of these societies by the normal townsfolk during their waking daylight hours.
Tucked up in the mountains is an exploration of contradiction/disconnect and the concept of captivity in the midst of sublime expanses. How else to explain a Bengal tiger caged by plastic deer fencing, surrounded by pine trees, and mocked by drunken visitors in the interior of BC? Or one woman's desire, "to kiss it goodnight every night before bed"?
But for all this, Tucked up in the mountains is also a celebration. One of childhood, the strength of friendships, of sharing and of rituals. It encompasses the beauty in suffering and community. Ultimately, it celebrates self-discovery: whether as a child exploring nature with your dog, or as an adolescent tearing up this nature with the wheels of a pimple-covered boy’s 4x4.
Through the installation of a sacred grove, complete with a cast of characters, theme song and musical performances, visitors to Tucked up in the mountains will be invited to witness and participate in these myths. The spectators will be invited to try on the lives of our small town's heroes and villains, literally through character sketches, masks, and costumes. The stories have been distilled from gossip, observation, and the artist’s own field-research. It is an evening of dance, music, poetry, and masks—worth discovering in the flesh.
Tucked up in the mountains: a small town mythology
by Frances McKenzie
Presented by queen sleuth design
Gallery Ethecae- 2131 St Catherine E.
2 min from Papineau metro
$7 at the door
Apr. 29: 7h30pm: vernissage
8h30pm: gallery performance by members of Teen Sleuth, Elliot Gold, Marcin Swoboda, Max Kelly, w/ choreography by Allison Burns. Sets by Reversing Falls, David Simard w/ Mona, and an acoustic set by Teen Sleuth
Apr. 30: 7h30pm: vernissage
8h30pm: gallery performance by members of Teen Sleuth, Elliot Gold, Marcin Swoboda, Max Kelly, w/ choreography by Allison Burns. Sets by Kara Keith, Lovers are people, and Mourning Coup.
www.queensleuthdesign.com/events/tuckedupinthemountains
www.ethecae.com
Tucked up in the mountains is the work of multidisciplinary artist Frances McKenzie. Frances is the art director/ production designer for Teen Sleuth & the Freed Cyborg Choir, an award winning music-based multidisciplinary production. Teen Sleuth had successful runs in the 2009 Fringe Festival and Pop Montréal. Frances' puppets, costumes, and video/animated projections brought the songs' lyrical imagery to life.
Tucked up in the mountains will be exhibited at Gallery Ethecae (2131 St Catherine E.) The vernissage will consist of two evenings (April 29 & 30), where there will be a performance piece featuring music, masks, dance, and installation. The vernissage begins at 7h30 and performances commence at 8h30 sharp.
The theme music to Tucked up in the mountains was written by Ellen Smallwood (Creative Director/ Writer/ Co-musical Director/ Composer for Teen Sleuth) and will be performed by herself, Aleks Schürmer (Creative Director for Party like it's 1699, Co-musical Director/ Composer & Keyboardist for Teen Sleuth), and additional Teen Sleuth members. The spectacle will also feature music by Schürmer aka Elliot Gold; composition and performance by violist Marcin Swoboda; and banjo player Max Kelly. Choreography will be by Allison Burns (Dancing in My Unbirthday Suit, Inertia Productions, Teen Sleuth), Heather Keiller (Choreographer, Stage Director of Teen Sleuth), Lydia Jenvey (teen sleuth, finnisant Ladmmi ecole de dance contemporaine) and dancer Maya Acker.
Following these spectacles, each evening will feature a unique line-up of bands. April 29 will be Reversing Falls, David Simard w/ Mona, and an acoustic set by Teen Sleuth. April 30 will be Kara Keith, Lovers are People, and Mourning Coup.
We cordially invite you to immerse yourself in our sacred grove; to tuck yourself up in the mountains and to come back again, asking: "what was that that just happened?"
Tucked up in the mountains: a small town mythology
by Frances McKenzie
Presented by queen sleuth design
Gallery Ethecae- 2131 St Catherine E.
2 min from Papineau metro
$7 at the door
Apr. 29: 7h30pm: vernissage
8h30pm: gallery performance by members of Teen Sleuth, Elliot Gold, Marcin Swoboda, Max Kelly, w/ choreography by Allison Burns. Sets by Reversing Falls, David Simard w/ Mona, and an acoustic set by Teen Sleuth
Apr. 30: 7h30pm: vernissage
8h30pm: gallery performance by members of Teen Sleuth, Elliot Gold, Marcin Swoboda, Max Kelly, w/ choreography by Allison Burns. Sets by Kara Keith, Lovers are people, and Mourning Coup.
www.queensleuthdesign.com/events/tuckedupinthemountains
www.ethecae.com
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