“Sorry I couldn’t make it to your opera. I was having part of my intestine removed.” - Jim
“I loved your circus.” - Nelly
“That was a wicked play.” - Maverick
Confusion from genre-less theatre work is all part of the plot. POISON CIRCUS was written as a toxic aberration. I didn’t set out to compose a play, or an opera, or Cirque du Soleil on acid. I wrote a story. I scored it. And art songs and instrumental works were pieced together like Dr. Frankenstein. What it morphed into in the end—after circus performers were hooked, and opera singers cast and the band trapped—was its own perversion. Maybe if I was Arturo from Geek Love I would have smothered it to death because it was threatening. If I was Al I would have claimed 100% of the credit for its creation and brainstormed new ways to milk it. I’m not Olympia, I don’t want to serve it. And I’m not Chick because I don’t want to cry over it. I could be the twins if I had a twin. I guess I’m Crystal Lil. I want POISON CIRCUS to be hideous and humorous, and let out to walk the Midway at night.
Philip Glass said, “...an opera house was the only place where Einstein on the Beach could be produced. That simple fact is what made Einstein an opera...”
POISON CIRCUS was staged in an indy arts theatre, which makes it an indy theatre work. Is it a play? Or opera or circus? It’s a mix of the toxic bits of all these art forms and subject to transmogrify.
To everyone who missed POISON CIRCUS, here is a quick highlight video to twist the knife in the wound. It was made by my intern in Korea, Amber.
POISON CIRCUS went off like a smoke bomb. To everyone who came and cringed, screamed and gave me dead flowers, THANK YOU! Now we record this genre-less musical tale of transmogrify. Throw a tip in the hat to help immortalize this harrowing play with music/opera/vaudeville/circus/show.
