Sutrajāl: Revelations of Gossamer
World Premiere: SEPTEMBER 20, 2019, The O’SHAUGHNESSY AT ST. CATHERINE UNIVERSITY (ST. pAUL, MN)
Sutrajāl is set in the Broken City, once inhabited by a vibrant range of people whose dreams and desires now languish on its streets. This city, crushed down by the recently constructed Shiny City, once hosted GloFFUC, the Global Feminist Funk Underground Club, cherished by communities of women and femmes from across the world, who gathered there at night to dance off their frustrations and returned to their struggles the next morning. The Poet wanders these haunted streets, trying to learn the histories of a disappeared community so she might connect past and future. Gradually, the relationships among these ghosts are revealed to be like gossamer, fine, silky, yet strong, and webbed through multiple layers, like a spider web.
Running Time: 90 minutes, without intermission
Concept & Choreography
Ananya Chatterjea
direction & scenography
Marcus Young
dramaturg
Sharon Bridgforth
costume DESIGN AND CONstruction
Annie Cady
lighting design
Kevin A. Jones
scenic design
Chelsea Warren
technical direction and scenic construction
Zeb Hults
Props design and fabrication
Kezia Germ
INSTRUMENTAL AND VOCAL MUSICIANS FEATURE IN RECORDED SCORE
Khary Jackson (cello)
Pooja Goswami Pavan (vocals)
Andrea "Queen Drea" Reynolds (vocals)
PJ Roduta (drumkit, bongo, doumbek, conga, udu, bombo, gongs, shakers, camel bells, found objects)
Text for Loving in Kashmir written by Ananya Chatterjea, spoken by Ananya Chatterjea, Renée Copeland, Kealoha Ferreira
Text spoken by Queen Drea from June Jordan’s “I must become a menace to my enemies.”
Text spoken by Pooja Goswami Pavan from Faiz Ahmad Faiz’s “Bol ki lab azaad hein tere.”
COMPOSER/SOUND DESIGNER/INSTRUMENTALIST
Renée Copeland (vocals, silver flute, double-reed wooden flute, bamboo flute, melodica, alto-saxophone, mbira, gongs, pakawaj, electric guitar, ukulele, midi-keyboard electronic instruments, found objects)
Media Design
Darren Johnson
Northern Dawn Media
animation
Tim Quinlan
performers
Lizzette Chapa
Ananya Chatterjea
Renée Copeland
Toan Thanh Doan
Alexandra Eady
Kealoha Ferreira
Julia Gay
Orlando Hunter
Hui Niu Wilcox
Alessandra Lebea Williams
Laichee Yang
Magnolia Yang Sao Yia
Live spoken word artist
Tish Jones (original spoken word text)
live instrumentalist
Douglas R. Ewart (Ewart Bell Vest, bells, sopranino saxophone, conch, glass Didjeridu/Didgeridoo on wheels
production manager
Emma Marlar
stage managers & apprentices
Noelle Awadallah
Fei Bi Chan
Nakita Kirchner
(See “Resources” below for a full playbill.)
