Rehearsals are in full swing for "Dinosaur", a contemporary dance piece about the oldest of topics: love. It is a duet by Janina Rajakangas for the amazing dancers Karolina Kraczkowska ja Robert Clarke. Super chuffed to be working with them and excited to premiere this in The Place on 31st October 2015!
Academic lighting
This year has started with an interesting variety of projects with the new category of academic events. February saw the annual gala of Svenska Litteratursällskapet and last week we worked on the 375 anniversary festival of Helsinki University. Both events took place in the grand hall of the university's main building which is an ideal for projected video and light with its gypsum white surfaces and imposing Roman style architecture.
Working with my VJ partner and colleague Paula Lehtonen we created a video and lighting designs that would enliven the different parts of the programmes and vary the moods in the space. We had the tech crew and equipment provided by Sound Engine and they made our task a lot easier with their professionalism.
These projects have added to crowing portfolio of projects in a great way and we're looking forward to working on more events in future.
Testing the projectors with Phil
Preparing for the SLS event
YL Male Voice Choir performing "Tango Desiree" in Helsinki University 375 event
The president of SLS giving a speech
New Nordic Dance in Bora Bora Platform
13 hours, 3 airports and 4 train stations later I've finally arrived to the Bora Bora Platform festival. Both the name and travel time are misleading, I'm actually not on a tropical island in Pacific Ocean but in Aarhus, Denmark.
Of Family and Deer is part of the programme on the festival for New Nordic Dance and we are in a good company indeed.
First edition of Bora Bora Platform is a four day long festival with the subtitle "New Nordic Dance" March 11th-14th 2015. Four days of ten new, Nordic dance performances, workshops, debates and feedback sessions. The theme is: "experience the dance, voice your opinion".
PROGRAMME:
- Don*Gnu Physical Theatre: N.A.R.G. – North Arena Rumble Game
- Marie-Louise Stentebjerg (DK) & Jonathan Bonnici (UK): T r a n s -
- Stina Nyberg (SE): Horrible Mixtures
- Sonya Lindfors (FI): NOIR?
- Ingri Fiksdal (NO): Hoods
- Janina Rajakangas Project (FI): Of Family and Deer
- Lucy Suggate (UK): PILGRIM
- Juha Valkeapää (FI): Executed Stories
- Chuck Morris (DK/DE/CH): Feminine Fun Studies
- Margrét Sara Guðjónsdóttir (IS): Blind Spotting
DEMS Music video
We made a new music video for a track called Muscle Memory by London band Dems. I helped the amazing team with lighting of the shoot. Really honoured to get to work with these brilliant people.
http://d-e-m-s.com
http://www.davidgardener.co.uk
http://cargocollective.com/vanmosco
Of Family and Deer in Mariehamn
All the groups who've been in Kedja's Wilderness residencies are gathering to Mariehamn to showcase their pieces. Ten groups from Nordic and Baltic countries will perform what they've worked on during the time spent in these isolated places in the middle of the nature, in wilderness.
We stopped in Turku to rehearse in Barker theatre before taking the ferry to Åland.
Really looking forward to seeing all the different shows.
http://www.kedja.net/?page_id=2096
Shameless self promotion
Interview with Total Lighting Magazine in May 2013.
Read the article here.