By Ally Tayag Ricarte
PearlArts Studios
In the 2019 production of sym, STAYCEE PEARL dance project & Soy Sos tunneled through the paradoxical universe of vampires and humans to navigate symbiosis, gender identity and race inspired by Octavia Butler’s “Fledgling.” Transcendent, fixed, and changing, Staycee and Herman conjured a deep naturalism with live experimental music by musicians Sadie Powers, Bonnie Jones, & Soy Sos as well as artwork by acclaimed visual artist Barbara Weissberger.
Staycee and Herman Pearl took inspiration from Octavia Butler’s 2005 novel Fledgling for the production of sym.
SPdp&SS activated this atmospheric installation which included stark white marley flooring and sharp white-colored set pieces – one of which was a box attached to a contact mic - in collaboration with set designer Rob Hackett. According to Hackett, initial conversations on the appearance and materials didn’t include this unexpected musical instrument.
“Initially the choice to use plywood was less important but later in the development Herman had the amazing idea to hook up a contact mic to the one box,” Hackett said. “The mic could pick up the steps, slaps, and rolls that were happening on it which helped it take on a whole new life. The resonance created by the hollow plywood forms was a pleasant surprise for me once I saw them being used.”
For SPdp&SS dancer Joy-Marie Thompson, performing on the set piece made her more delicate in her portrayal of the protagonist, Shori. “The mic'd up box made me very aware of every step I took on the box so I became a bit more precious with my feet there,” Thompson said. “I'm happy that Staycee used an elaborate set as it was a very precious piece for her.”
(Left to right) Joy-Marie Thompson, LaTrea Rember, & Dava Huesca performing sym in the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater in 2019.
Hackett believes his sculptures are a catalyst to address familiar space, but working with contemporary dancers enhanced the potential of sculpture and art forms. “I loved seeing the ways that the dancers used the objects and how they pushed everything to the extremes. There were things happening that made me truly question the way the human body can move,” Hackett said. “This experience, coupled with the audio atmosphere created by Herman and the other musicians, made me think about the objects that I had created in an entirely different way. I think that collaboration with artists in different disciplines is one of the best ways to challenge the way we work individually.”
“sym was a unique work in that all the elements of the piece came together to create an alien landscape that was stark, but at the same time very lush. The set pieces were simple, but very elegant and larger than life.”
BONUS Q&A WITH KITOKO CHARGOIS, COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, PROGRAMS COORDINATOR AND PHOTOGRAPHER
What was your first impression of sym?
Having read “Fledgling,” my first impression of sym was awe. It takes a lot of mastery to interpret a work, and in the process create something so original. My senses were so fully engaged by the soundscape, the choreography, and visuals and the play of light.
What was it like to photograph within the spatial composition of sym? How was this unique from previous SPdp productions?
sym was a unique work in that all the elements of the piece came together to create an alien landscape that was stark, but at the same time very lush. The set pieces were simple, but very elegant and larger than life. Combined with the imagery Barbara created and the videos by Staycee filling up the scrim in the background, the set felt huge! I was very happy because I got to play around with things white space, proportions and shadows.
Left to right: LaTrea Rembert, Dava Huesca, Joy-Marie Thompson, Jess Marino Mitcham and Quaba Ernest performing sym in the Kelly-Strayhorn in 2019. Photography by Kitoko Chargois.
What were some of the big moments that stuck with you from photographing sym?
I love photographing SPdp&SS productions because there are always images that imprint themselves on my brain. One of the most visually striking to me was when Joy-Marie as Shori is alone onstage. She's lying on the large white block, and she's just waking up with literally no awareness of being. The stage is mostly shadowed, but the lights hit her face just so. There's so many emotions being communicated through her body and a video of her face contorting through different expression plays on screen behind her. It's stunning.
What is the responsibility of the photographer in documenting dance productions? How have your experiences in photography helped you grow personally and professionally?
There's so many beautiful layers of creation that happens before a piece hits the stage. I think photographers have a responsibility to capture the passion and hard work that goes into making a dance production. When I photograph work, I want to represent the work in its entirety of course, but I also want to add to the experience. I want my images to be another level of creation. I never photographed dance before coming to work at PearlArts Studios. From the choreography to the sound, visuals, costumes, lighting, everyone's passion and skills feeds my own as a photographer, and more importantly, it feeds my soul.
STAYCEE PEARL dance project & Soy Sos is celebrating its 10th anniversary and the birthday of our cofounder/choreographer Staycee Pearl all of May with a month-long retrospective to honor the company’s history of innovative dance, multimedia experiences, and meaningful collaborations. In honor of our 10th anniversary, we’ll be sharing a series of blog posts dedicated to giving you an inside look at our productions through the decade.
If you’re just tuning into our anniversary series, be sure to check out our Anniversary retrospective series here: