Asylum Song at HERE Arts Center
An ensemble of four playing multiple roles, along with a central, emerging puppet, move fluidly in time to depict the story of Anna K., a young Slovakian immigrant, whose fate has been kept secret by her family for eight decades. As her adult granddaughter begins to dig into historical records, she must defy the family code of silence to liberate her grandmother from obscurity and stigma and find a path toward empathic understanding. Focusing on Anna’s final days in a state mental asylum in 1927, this multi-media production presents the heartbreaking reality of being a non-English speaking woman confined to an institution after one traumatic episode. By interweaving stark clinical observations drawn from Anna’s actual case record with a poetic lyrical voice, flesh and blood are conjured back on to the family skeleton. As the mystery of Anna’s life is illuminated, the need to acknowledge sad, difficult truths is met with the capacity to finally love, mourn, and embrace her.
ADJUSTED REALISTS
in association with WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY
presents
ASYLUM SONG
By Jeanne Marie Beaumont
Directed by Elizabeth Ostler
Starring Elizabeth Chappel, Jeremiah Maestas,*
Katie Proulx, & Renee Stork*
Production Stage Manager Lyndsey Barratt
Assistant Director/Movement Direction Matt Mastromatteo
Scenic Design Sam Transleau
Lighting Design Jessica Greenberg
Costume Design Amanda Whitfield
Scenic Design Sam Transleau
Sound Design Grace Heinz
Video/Projection Design Tiffany Campbell
Composition Steve Smith
Puppet Design Elizabeth Ostler
May 31 - June 15
TICKETS: $25
HERE Arts Center
145 Sixth Ave.
(Enter on Dominick, 1 block south of Spring)
*AEA approved showcase
