TOUR PACKAGE Carmen Sweet by Natalie Weir
CONTENTS TOURING FACT SHEET 3 THE WORK 4 WHAT THE CRITICS SAY 5 IN YOUR VENUE 6 BUT DON T JUST BELIEVE US 8 FOR ADDITIONAL MATERIAL VSIT: http://expressionsdancecompany.org.au/tourable-works/ password: EDCONTOUR FOR THE FULL PERFORMANCE VIDEO VISIT: http://vimeo.com/81679489 password: SWEET 2
TOURING FACT SHEET PERFORMANCE INFORMATION 60 mins - no interval MAXIMUM PERFORMANCES PER WEEK 5 (2 shows per day possible 3 times per week) TOURING FEES & BUDGET Remount $19,100 Weekly Fee $20,490 with 8% Gbo AVAILABILITY until 31/12/2016 Queensland Tour taking place in Oct 2014 TOURING PARTY Cast: 6 (Dancers) Crew: 4 (Tour Manager/ Production Manager; Stage Manager; Rehearsal Director; Lighting Operator/Realisor) TECHNICAL BRIEF Formats: Proscenium Arch, Black Box, Thrust, Flat Floor Hall, Band Room Cabaret, Outdoor Stage Bump In Time: 5hrs (pre rig required) Bump Out Time: 3hrs First Performance: Evening Day 1 LIGHTING Design by Ben Hughes Pre-rig essential to keep bump in hours as specified. Grand Ma Desk Suitable (or Ma Lite) Lighting Design will be modified to suit venue specifications Design includes booms (toured with the production on longer tours) 3 Mac700s movers (toured with the production on longer tours) Haze Machine required Required Venue Bump In Crew - 4 crew x 4hrs Required Venue Bump Out Crew - 2 crew x 2hrs to remove moving lights SOUND All music is pre-recorded and played back from QLab by stage manager PA must be capable of providing good quality front of house system Required Venue Bump In Crew - 1 crew x 2hrs if standard flown rig in place STAGING Stage minimum 8m wide x 6m deep x 5m height (plus 2m wing space) to fit the entire set compromising 1 red couch and a hung curtain Pre-rig of legs and borders required if 5hr bump in is to be achieved. Sprung floor if available. Tarkett toured by production. Required Venue Bump In Crew - 2 crew x 4 hrs to unload and set staging Required Venue Bump Out Crew - 2 crew for 2hrs to remove tarkett and load truck 3
THE WORK This iconic tale of Spanish heat and gypsy passion unravels when naïve soldier Don José has his heart ignited by the fiery Carmen, discarding his childhood sweetheart and deserting the army. Josè's attempts to tame the freedom-loving beauty are futile, and when she leaves him for the famous toreador Escamillo, all three are engulfed in the flames of jealousy and revenge. Opera's most famous femme fatale is stripped bare in Natalie Weir's sumptuous new dance interpretation of the legendary Carmen story, performed to Shchedrin's gripping Carmen Suite by the stunning EDC ensemble of six dancers. Weir's Carmen is a free spirit; dangerous, volatile and vulnerable, brought to vivid life by three dancers playing her different states of mind and alter egos. This is a tour de force production by EDC. It features a wonderful community engagement section, where ten local dancers are rehearsed to perform a section with the Matador. Carmen Sweet is a unique and exotic tale with gorgeous costumes and stunning lighting. The beauty for touring lies in its accessibility to a wide range of audiences and its ability to fit into most venues. is co-produced by Expressions Dance Company and QPAC. This 50-minute full-length work premiered in Cremorne Theatre, QPAC (244 seat venue) in Brisbane October 2013. It was originally commissioned by the Queensland Symphony Orchestra to accompany a live orchestral performance of the wonderful Rodoin Shchedrin s 43 minute Carmen Suit. Therefore it was designed to work in a very small performance space and to really enhance the wonderful score. The audience s reaction to that premiere performance in November 2012 really highlighted we had a wonderful concept and product in our midst. The work went on to feature as part of the Ballet Under the Stars program in Singapore in July 2013. Here it performed in a large outdoor stage to 7,000 people and captured the audience s imagination. Another performance happened at the Noosa Long Weekend Festival in June 2013. The response to this simple yet incredibly emotive and compelling work prompted EDC to create an in-theatre version. The work was extended by ten minutes; and a community engagement component and a lighting design was added. The work in this version was premiered in the Cremorne Theatre in October 2013. CHOREOGRAPHER Natalie Weir COMPOSER Rodoin Shchedrin DESIGN Bill Haycock LIGHTING Ben Hughes DANCERS Expressions Dance Company 4
WHAT THE CRITICS SAY A brilliant piece of dance theatre. The Courier-Mail A short, sharp and very entertaining interpretation of a classic tale... Four stars. Artshub The movement is vintage Weir, carving shapes in the air like a sculptor s chisel clean and precise, but also lusciously evocative. Dance Australia Weir s movement always generates excitement. There s a visceral thrill of seeing bodies propelling through space, dancers launching themselves or being hurled in all directions. The intricacies of Weir s lift transitions, executed seamlessly by her superb ensemble, are another Weir hallmark. The Courier-Mail A heady mix of passion, poisonous rage and plaintive love It is easy to see why this is EDC s most popular production. Scene Magazine A must-see performance The combination of breathtaking choreography and inspiring dancers will leave you in awe and wanting more. DanceBNE A thoroughly engaging dance experience. Stage Whispers World-class contemporary dance. XS Entertainment 5
In Your Venue This saucy and exquisitely beautiful production is perfect in cabaret mode for your theatre. However, as the story progresses the performance becomes intense drama making it perfect also for a theatre experience. Following on from the touring success of R&J, EDC has once again produced an extraordinary dance production that focuses on connecting emotionally with its audience and giving presenters and venues the much sought-after hook of a well known concept and story. Telling the exotic tale through the choreography of award winning dance maker, Natalie Weir and including emotionally riveting performances from award winning EDC dancers, has broad appeal. With gorgeous costumes and stunning lighting, its beauty as a touring production lies in its appeal to a wider audience - dance and music alike, and for its ability to perform in almost all venues with a performance space of 6x8m excluding onstage lighting booms. The set, consisting only of a back curtain and a wonderfully iconic sofa, allows the performances and the music to tell this famous dramatic tale. The production gets its name from its delicious interpretation of the story of Carmen, that has been created to a quirky and sublime reinterpretation and orchestration of Bizet's Carmen arranged for strings and percussion entitled Carmen Suite. Russian composer, Rodion Shchedrin, describes the work as "a creative meeting of the minds" with Bizet's melodies reclothed in a variety of fresh instrumental colours (including the frequent use of percussion), set to new rhythms and often phrased with a great deal of sly wit. AUDIENCES has the potential to attract new, non-traditional dance audiences as well as delight those with an understanding of the artform. The potential demographics are: dance enthusiasts opera and music enthusiasts cabaret and theatre lovers general public engaged through themes theatre lovers music theatre lovers music lovers 19-55 age groups secondary dance and theatre students contemporary dance audiences Carmen Sweet also attracts secondary students as it displays an incredible interpretation of a well known story with excellent characterization and story telling exploring iconic themes such as lust, love triangles, passion, jealousy and rage and alongside such a wonderful music interpretation of the infamous Bizet opera. To aid in future marketing campaigns, EDC can provide: Flyers and posters Full performance footage in addition to short promo videos Copy and images for a printed program Media kit including press releases, strong images and broadcast ready footage and music Collection of very positive reviews from reputable news organisations Generic PR plan that can be adapted to the local area Scaffolding material for foyer exhibitions, websites and online social media 6
EDUCATION ENGAGEMENT Expressions Dance Company is renowned for its dance-in-education program. As such, we recommend working with us to engage the senior secondary dance and music students of your region and offer them a special package that includes tickets to the show and a workshop at their school. Throughout our 30 years of touring, we ve found this to be a great way to attract young people and their families to shows and also offer skill development. EDC dancers offer workshops: Introduction to contemporary dance and contemporary technique Contact duo/improvisation Choreography Repertoire Scaffolding and building the experience Expressions Dance Company can assist you to build a dynamic social media program around your event. We can provide YouTube clips; interviews with the dancers (both visual and written); interviews with the creative team; background information on the characters and the work; rehearsal footage and images; and notes by the choreographer, composer, musical director and designers. 7
But Don t Just Believe Us Natalie Weir s Are we easy to work with? Do we deliver a high production and performance standard? Are we organised and professional? Ask colleagues who have worked with us before: Ross Cunningham Director - Presenter Services Queensland Performing Arts Centre P: +61 7 3842 9138 E: ross.cunningham@qpac.com.au Noel Staunton Artistic Director Brisbane Festival P: +61 7 3833 5400 E: noel@brisbanefestival.com.au 8