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Orpheus sings. --What did I think would happen? --I'd get back Eurydice's shade --Like a wind in my sails, crying, Orpheus? --I'd drag her body stinking from the grave? Orpheus buries his head in his hands. --The body is a tomb. --I, Orpheus, long dead, bring back a corpse: my own. |
 Silent Orpheus Presented by Harvard University, Creative Time, Thundergulch, and the Institute of Cultural Inquiry. Special thanks to Grahame Weinbren. +This performance in the Orpheus series took place on Dec. 1, 1997, on the occasion of the international Day Without Art. This special one-time event retold the story of Orpheus, legendary singer and poet, focusing on the bleak time when he went down to Hell to bring his love, Eurydice, back from the dead. During Orpheus's absence, music and poetry vanished from Earth, replaced by babble. The performance took place on IDMOO, hosted by the School of Visual Arts, NY, and was seen by by simultaneous projection at the Video Wall at 55 Broad St., New York, and at the Institute of Cultural Inquiry, Santa Monica. After the performance there was an open online discussion with the Plaintext Players about the performance. Silent Orpheus was a part of Creative Time's DWA Web Action, which is annually coordinated to facilitate the coming together of individuals as well as organizations to defy geographical boundaries and publicly unite around the grave impact of the AIDS pandemic. For more information about the 1997 Web Action, visit Creative Time's Web Action site.
The Plaintext Players would like to thank Grahame Weinbren and Harvard University for inviting them to perform; Carol Stakenas and Creative Time for presenting this event; Kathy Brew and Thundergulch for making the Video Wall projections possible; the Institute of Cultural Inquiry for hosting the performance; Jason Largever for technical assistance; and Robert Allen for MOO programming.+ [ TRANSCRIPT ] [ CAST AND PERFORMANCE ] |