Squonk Opera
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Squonk Opera is a group of interdisciplinary performing artists from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Led by artistic directors Jackie Dempsey and Steve O'Hearn and also currently including Nathan Wilson, Kevin Kornicki, and Christina Acosta as well as many other collaborating artists, Squonk Opera formed in 1992 and has created seven distinct shows and performed in over 200 venues in the United States (as of 2006). In the 2003/2004 season, they also began performing outside their home country, doing shows in Scotland, Belgium, and South Korea.
Squonk Opera's shows consist of music, visual art, and acting elements in an attempt to make a form of opera accessible to all people. The group "like to think of ourselves as a wacky, provincial opera company," says Dempsey, who named the group "Squonk" after a description of a jazz saxophonist's playing as a "squonk-fest", rather than the Genesis song of the same name.
In 2000, Squonk Opera took their show Bigsmõrgåsbørdwünderwerk onto Broadway from its previous off-Broadway run. Though the venture was a commercial failure, the exposure it gained them was ultimately beneficial. Squonk Opera is currently signed with Angel Records.
Squonk Opera has received several grants and awards for their work, including two NEA grants, an American Theater Wing Award, and grants from the Rockefeller M.A.P. Fund, Heinz Endowments, Richard King Mellon Foundation, Henson Foundation and The Pittsburgh Foundation.
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[edit] Current members
- Jackie Dempsey: artistic director, composer, pianist, accordionist
- Steve O’Hearn: artistic director, artist, wind player
- Kevin Kornicki: assistant musical director, sound designer, percussionist [all except howandever]
- Nathan Wilson: fretless bass [Rodeo Smackdown]
- Christina Acosta: vocals [Rodeo Smackdown]
In addition to the core performers, Squonk Opera also collaborates with a variety of artists and technicians. Joel Mason is the group's production manager. Several other members were previously part of the group but have since moved on to other projects.
[edit] Previous members
- Jody Abbott: Vocals [Inferno]
- T. Weldon Anderson: (Bass?) [Bigsmõrgåsbørdwünderwerk]
- Kate Aronson: Vocals [howandever]
- Brian Berkheiser: Electric Bass [howandever, Ha Ha Tali]
- Sean Brennan: Contraption Kit & Rototoms [howandever]
- Nathan Fay: Electric & Double Bass [Inferno]
- Akshay Goel: Tabla & Electric Tabla [howandever]
- Jana Losey: Vocals [Ha Ha Tali, Bigsmõrgåsbørdwünderwerk]
- Casi Pacilio: Technical Director [Ha Ha Tali, Bigsmõrgåsbørdwünderwerk]
[edit] Shows
- Forgotten Works (1995)
- A work focusing on "consumption, waste, and recycling", in collaboration with modern dance troupe No Language. Forgotten Works was performed at Keystone Iron & Metal, a Pittsburgh scrapyard; the artists used such unlikely materials as cranes, demolished cars, and metal shearers as part of the performance.
- Night of the Living Dead: The Opera (1995)
- Squonk Opera was commissioned to set music and live-action performance to the classic Night of the Living Dead zombie film for the Pittsburgh City Theatre.
- Firedogs (1996)
- A humorous educational multimedia picture of the Pittsburgh steel industry, including such characters as "Bessie the Bessemer Furnace".
- The Great Circle Route (1998)
- Subtitled "The Underwater Opera", The Great Circle Route claims inspiration from medical textbooks, Godzilla movies, and Michel Foucault in a show that draws on imagery of the underwater world for a journey under the sea.
- Bigsmõrgåsbørdwünderwerk (1998)
- A surreal tour through the "restaurant kitchen of the mind", in a mix of horror and fantasy.
- Inferno (2001)
- A tale of a mine fire in Centralia, Pennsylvania, based on Dante's Divine Comedy. Initially titled Burn during some early performances.
- Rodeo Smackdown (2004)
[edit] CDs
- howandever (1994)
- Ha Ha Tali (1996)
- Bigsmõrgåsbørdwünderwerk (2000)
- Inferno (2002)
- Rodeo Smackdown (2004)
