| « Passing Strange | Overheard Illustrated: "Tattoo" » |
Performance Mon Apr 25 2011
Not Your Grandma's Opera
Whether you're an opera aficionado or an opera virgin, consider exposing yourself to an avant-garde take on it this week with Mexico City's Teatro de Ciertos Habitantes' El Gallo: Opera for Actors-- part of the MCA's Global Stage Series. This piece of experimental theater, opening this Wednesday with a short run (through May 1), features a music director and five singers pushing themselves to their limits, "teetering between insanity and euphoria as they work through their deepest
inhibitions." Sung entirely in a made-up language, El Gallo features a score and libretto by British composer, Paul Barker, who conducts the music-- performed live by Chicago's MAVerick Ensemble.
The first half of the show is performed in promenade-- with the audience getting an intense, behind-the-scenes look at the creative process as the characters prepare for a music competition. The audience then "attends" the competition by watching the finished product from the theater seats.
Performances take place at the MCA this Wednesday April 27 through Saturday, April 30 at 7:30pm and Sunday, May 1 at 3pm. Tickets ($22-28, $10 for students) are available at the MCA Box Office at 312-397-4010 or www.mcachicago.org, where more information about the show can also be found. This week's performances feature a moderated post-show talk with the cast in the theater on Wednesday, April 27 and a "Saturday Speakeasy" after the show on the 30th-- a less formal gathering for mingling over refreshments.
Kelly Reaves / April 28, 2011 1:52 PM
As a brief follow up, now that I've seen the performance, I'd like the add that EL GALLO is absolutely stunning and powerful. It's amazing what can be said without using words. Highly recommended.