Nomadic Tempest
Lavish, operatic multimedia show performed on tall ship moored at False Creek
Paul Kirby and Nans Kelder have been taking theatre to the people since 1970, when they toured their one-wagon, horse-drawn puppet show around Vancouver Island.
That humble beginning grew to six wagons pulled by teams of Clydesdales until Kirby and Kelder bought a farm outside Armstrong, B.C., and briefly settled down. That was the genesis of the famous communal-living theatre company now known as Caravan Farm Theatre.
In the mid-80s, the couple split from the farm/theatre community and formed Caravan Stage Company, a horse-and-wagon theatre troupe, and set off to tour the U.S.
But even that wasn’t nomadic enough. In 1993 they built the Amara Zee, a 30-metre tall ship replica of a Thames River sailing barge. Aboard this floating stage, they have now entertained thousands across Europe and North America.
Their shows have been variously described as Cirque du Soleil-on-a-barge, an experimental opera and a multimedia spectacle. Colourful images are projected onto a large scrim that hangs from the rigging; the costumes are lavish; lighting effects are extravagant.
In Nomadic Tempest, the year is 2040 and the “Drowning Wave” – a result of global warming – has forced four monarch butterflies to flee their home. But two evil SwallowWarts (representing the oil industry) are refusing them sanctuary: “Out, out, damned refugees.”
The story is told by Kanandra, a “Prophet of Exile,” to five “Young Ones,” who are curious about how the apocalypse happened.
The songs are sung in five languages (English, Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin and Halkomelem, a Coast Salish language) with translations projected on a scrim.
Nomadic Tempest is magical, but the music is definitely in the operatic mode. It’s an unusual choice and, for those who don’t like opera, the music is hard to listen to, in spite of the virtuosity of the singers. While the message is not heavy-handed – “The planet is looking for your heart” – it resonates most with those already wishing for alternatives to the fossil fuel industry.
A troubling irony remains: At the end of the show, many of us get back into our gas-fuelled cars and drive home feeling guilty the whole way. What to do? What to do?
For more info: caravanstage.org
• South shore of False Creek, just east of the Cambie Bridge, 9:45 p.m., Tuesday-Sunday until Sept. 3. Free. Tickets for all performances are spoken for but a limited number of seats are available at the door. Bleacher seating or bring a chair or blanket. Not recommended for children 10 and under.
Uninterrupted
Swim with the salmon with Nettie Wild’s stunning film
Sous le pont / Cambie Bridge / Salmon are dancing / Salmon are dancing.
Your heart will dance, too, as the concrete underside of the bridge is transformed into a huge canvas for the story of B.C. salmon returning to the river of their birth to spawn.
Award-winning filmmaker Nettie Wild created and directs this spectacular cinematic art installation with images that include salmon the size of orcas swimming directly into the camera; swaying underwater grasses; golden leaves glittering in the autumn sun; and ruby-red salmon roe with tiny embryos inside drifting lazily in the current.
Uninterrupted – 30 minutes of the most stunning visuals – will make your heart leap like salmon vaulting the falls and allow you to believe, if only briefly, that the world will be alright as long as salmon make their incredible journey from lake to river to the world’s oceans and unerringly back to their gravelly birthplace.
Amazing, too, are the number of viewers – like schools of fish – gazing upwards at the spectacle.
In addition to the show, there is a terrific interactive website that takes you through the lifecycle of the salmon: uninterrupted.ca. It concludes with a staggering statistic: “For every 2,000 eggs laid, only one or two adult salmon will make the journey and return safely to the river.”
Uninterrupted is the trippiest, most profound and most exhilarating show in town. Interrupt everything to see it.
• Under the north end of the Cambie Bridge until Sept. 24. Tuesdays-Saturdays at 9 p.m. Free. uninterrupted.ca
