by Megan Dart, Catch the Keys Productions
Curator, NuMusic@NextFest

NuMusic@NextFest, image by Kevin Green

When NextFest Festive Director Steve Pirot approached me about adding new music to the NextFest lineup a mere two months before the 15th annual festival was scheduled to launch, his request was rather open-ended: there was once maybe a few years ago a new music event at NextFest that showcased works by emerging composers, he told me. I think there might have been someone who played a saxophone without a reed. Yeah. It was wild. Oh, and a marimba. There was a marimba. Think you could curate something like that?

Sure, Steve. I can curate something like that.

Calling on the artistic and planning talents of Michael MacDonald, Daniel Brophy and Colin Labadie, our team went to work.

What started as an exercise in showcasing new works by emerging composers played by emerging musicians quickly became an epic, modern twist on operatic theatrical performance.

Enlisting the talents of nine composers, five musicians, seven actors, one videographer, one writer, and incorporating bucket-loads of creativity, the occasional beer-fueled brainstorming session and the sometimes frustratingly brilliant inability to say “enough!,” NuMusic@NextFest was born.

Developing an operatic twist on the exquisite corpse – an artistic activity where each collaborator adds to an idea one piece at a time without discussing his or her contribution with other participants – emerging composers from across Canada were asked to create based on one of two themes: Virion, an intense examination of a changing world where civilization is, in essence, forever altered, and The Eradication of the Unnecessary Chance, a futurist, post-apocalyptic society.

Composers were given no information other than the themes, a list of instruments and an approximate performance length.

The instruments chosen for the project include a saxophone, played by Allison Balcetis, a double bass played by Robyn Reekie, percussion played by Reg Kachanosky, a flute, played by Twila Bakker, a violin played by James Law, and the audience, played by, well, you.

I’msorrypardonme, the audience?!

Tasked with the daunting responsibility of composing for the audience, composer Daniel Brophy has created interludes which bridge the pieces composed for proper instruments with the intention of, for lack of a better explanation, incorporating the audience as an instrument as much as any wind or percussion piece.

These interludes are performed in conjunction with or addition to film excerpts created by Michael MacDonald. Building on the themes, but having not heard the music, Michael created a filmic narrative designed to carry the audience (when they’re not performing themselves, of course) through the arc of the story told by the music (psst – get a sneak peak by watching the trailer for Virion!)

The filming in process for virion

And then there are the survivors and futurists.

Enlisting the live acting talents of Darren Paul and Emily Bachynski, these two talented thespians will serve as the audience’s tour guides, helping patrons navigate the interludes and occasionally adding their two cents – by dialogue or movement – to the progression of the story.

All of these sections of performance will, hopefully, culminate in one master performance piece which, when recorded and played back (the enth dimension of this collaboration), will present itself as a complete story.

If these wayward pieces come together the way we’re hoping, the end result will be a seamless performance designed to tell a rendition of how the world is changing around us.

But between you and me, even WE don’t know if this whole experiment will work. And that’s the beauty of it, really. A collaborative artistic chance, process brought to life.

PS – nervous about your performance as an audience member? Don’t be. We’re all in this together and no one will be singled out.

See NuMusic@NextFest:

Part One: Virion
Tuesday, June 8 (Performance time to be announced. Stay tuned!)
Azimuth Theatre, Living Room Playhouse (11315 106 Ave)
The introduction of technology works like a virus: converting ideas into monstrous entities, viral cells attack and mutate everything in its path until a point is reached where everything changes. Like the point where water becomes ice or vapour, there is a change.

Featuring new works by:
Ruth Guechtal, Tomas Bouda, Tom Merklinger, Sally Norris. Audience Interludes by Dan Brophy.

Part Two: The Eradication of the Unnecessary Chance
Thursday, June 10 (Performance time to be announced. Stay tuned!)
Azimuth Theatre, Living Room Playhouse (11315 106 Ave)

After the change, a new reality exists where remnants of the old way are hunted down and converted. Now is the time to regain some of what we lost. Now it is time to tell the real story.

Featuring new works by:
Nancy Tam, Raimundo Gonzalez, Glenn James, Colin Labadie. Audience Interludes by Dan Brophy.

Both nights played by musicians:
Robyn Reekie, Bass
Twila Bakker, Flute
Alison Balcetis, Saxophone
Reg Kachanoski, Percussion
James Law, Violin

Survivors and Futurists:
Emily Bachynski and Darren Paul,

Film Performers:

Emily Bachynski, Joleen Ballendine, Stuart Hoye, Kyla Shinkewski, Joey Lucious, Darren Paul, Matt Schuurman

Tickets, festival passes, information and dating advice available through Roxy Theatre (780.451.2440).

Special thanks to the Department of Music and Ncounters for supporting this event.