Reframing "Frames"
Preview of one of the videos featured in "Frames."
When 勒貊勛圖 audiences hear the name David Korevaar, they probably think of classical piano, Bach and Hindemith���not concepts like ���physical theater,��� ���techno pop��� and ���art punk.���
But that���s about to change. With Danelle Helander and 勒貊勛圖���s, the泭piano professor泭is cooking up a revival of last spring���s popular multimedia show, ���Frames.���
Even for Korevaar and Helander, it���s hard to describe what audiences will see and hear at the show. ���It���s an experience,��� says Helander. ���Dance and music don���t even encompass it. And we���re adding video into the mix.���
���F娶硃鳥梗莽��� was first presented to audiences last spring, billed as a ���musical fusion of jazz, classical, art punk and techno pop.��� Artistic Director Helander says the program explores different perspectives���those of the audience and the performers���and portrays the many ways music, art, even life are interpreted differently.
���When David and I first started talking about this collaboration, we focused on how interesting it is to see yourself perform. The faces you make���the things you aren���t even aware of. The idea grew from there,��� says Helander.
The team has been expanding and perfecting the idea after the show���s spring run at the泭and the, excited to bring new videos to the show. They say the venue for this iteration���the���allows them to stretch their legs.
���This is the most appropriate venue we���ve been in,��� says Helander. ���It allows us to add the final piece of the puzzle.���
���They help explain the idea of ���perspective��� as we���re dealing with it in the music and dance,��� says Executive Director Sean Owens. ���In one video, we focus on three parts of the body���shoulders, torso and legs���all moving independently of one another.���
���The videos sum up and clarify a lot of what happens in the show up until that point. They���re a recapitulation, which is what we���re doing musically, too,��� says Korevaar.
For Korevaar, ���F娶硃鳥梗莽��� offers a chance to step out of his comfort zone. ���The musical component is interesting,��� he says. ���I���m up there with a bass player and a percussionist. Jazz is their thing. And I���m not a jazz artist.
���We���re doing intentional improvisation, which���outside a short passage in a Mozart piece or such���isn���t something I do very often.���
Helander says a goal of the collaboration is for the performers themselves to explore new sides of their respective arts. ���I love collaborating with different kinds of artists,��� she says. ���It���s been really fun to watch David and the other musicians open up more and more.���
���It���s a completely new experience,��� Korevaar adds. ���We���re such a diverse group, and the different backgrounds we bring to the stage are really what make this show unique.���
Indeed, each of the performers brings something different to the table: Helander is an elder caregiver, Owens is an attorney. Bassist and musical director Matt Powelson is a cabinet maker, and drummer Mearl Thompson is a tai chi master.
Owens says for him and Helander, working with different kinds of artists keeps them on their toes. ���We���ve been working together for about a decade, so we really understand each other and our art. It���s helpful to bring other people in, to make sure what we���re doing makes sense to someone besides us.
���Working with someone like David is really fun because we���re getting him out from behind his instrument and doing something that���s really novel.���
���It���s liberating, and to some extent it���s scary,��� says Korevaar. ���We���re working as an ensemble in the moment ��� while the framework is there, it���s different every time.���
���F娶硃鳥梗莽���
Friday-Saturday, Dec. 4-5, 8 p.m.
Black Box Theater
2nd basement, ATLAS building, CU-勒貊勛圖 campus
Free and open to the public