Embedded Files
This production of Healing Wars is directed and adapted by Keith Thompson, who portrayed the "Freeman" character in the original production in 2014. Reproducing the show with a team of student performers and designers - complete with a live band playing new compositions by music director Mario Yniguez - was a challenging process, but one that produced beautiful results.
Keep reading to learn more about two of the staging conventions Healing Wars employs: post-modern contemporary dance and a coalitional approach to embodied representation.
POST-MODERN CONTEMPORARY DANCE
Much of the dance seen in Healing Wars can be best described as post-modern contemporary (PMC). PMC evolved from modern dance in the 1950s and 60s. Decades prior, modern dance had emerged from dancers’ desire to break with the constraints of ballet, but in doing so modern dancers formed new dance “schools” with their own ideologies and codified techniques. Post-modern dance rejects the virtuosic schools and codes of modern dance and embraces a wide and often pedestrian movement vocabulary. The indelibly human pacing, stillness, and gestural performance seen in Healing Wars are emblematic traits of PMC dance. Abstraction is often associated with PMC, in which expression can be an inward experience for the performer; the choreography can be scripted from random movements chosen with the flip of a coin, far from conveying any intended narrative, or the pedestrian movements can be leveraged to support a story. Pioneers of the PMC include Merce Cunningham, Meredith Monk, Anna Halprin, and Trisha Brown, with whom director Keith Thompson performed and toured for years.
An example of post-modern contemporary dance.
COALITIONAL EMBODIMENT
Though Healing Wars is largely fictional, it is informed by extensive research, which included site visits to Civil War battlefields and medical laboratories; interviews with soldiers, veterans, doctors, clinicians, medical historians, and even Civil War reenactors; and readings surrounding key figures from Civil War history. Thus, in addition to the fictionalized figures among the cast, the piece includes the stories of several real people: Clara Barton, Civil War nurse and founder of the American Red Cross; Dr. Richard Jadick, a Bronze Star American naval surgeon; and Lance Corporal Demarkus D. Brown, a 19-year-old marine killed by enemy action in Fallujah, Iraq. These individual stories add depth and veracity to the fabric of the show, allowing us a glimpse into the actual consequences of war. The aim of representing these people on stage is to honor their lives.
In its storytelling, Healing Wars adopts a coalitional approach to embodiment. This means that, as performers move between named and unnamed characters from scene to scene, they cross identificatory lines. At times, actors may portray characters whom their racial or gender identities do not align. In this performance, the embodiment of a character is not meant to be an individual experience; rather, to be a person or to tell a story is to portray the multitudinous nature of the experience of war. The aim of this storytelling tactic is to emphasize the interconnectedness of those affected by war.
Clara Barton
Lance Cpl. Demarkus D. Brown
Dr. Richard Jadick
a look backstage
a look backstage
Student designers and their experienced faculty mentors are responsible for everything you see in Healing Wars. Below, they've shared materials from their design processes.
SCENIC design
SCENIC design
Scenic designer Jacob Dunn brought to life an environment evocative of Civil War architecture. Below are Jacob's preliminary scenic renderings, followed by the rendering of his final set design which you can see onstage!
LIGHTING DESIGN
LIGHTING DESIGN
Co-lighting designers Maia Gomez and Krystalynn Newbury are responsible for the beautiful lighting illuminating both the Preamble and the stage performance of Healing Wars. In regard to their design approach, Maia said:
"Healing Wars is beautiful because of how personal it is. When we talk about war, it's traditionally talked about in a national and/or global context, never really taking into account the people who are actually fighting. This pieces makes you empathize with individuals and the burden they are left with. For the lighting design, Krystalynn and I wanted to create a specific color palette for each era within the story to aid in the timelessness of the storytelling. Since this is a non-linear performance, establishing visual differences between the Civil War and modern war helps the audience follow the story. As far as process goes, our designs changed as we finally got to see the movement and dance in action. We thought about how to elevate the forms of each performer to create the most powerful image possible."
Below is the team's preliminary design presentation, in which they lay out some of their first ideas for lighting, followed by production photos which showcase the final result!
media design
media design
Co-media designers Glenna Negron and Abby Meyers created an array of visual elements and effects for both the Preamble and the stage performance.
Below is the team's slide deck, in which they present some initial ideas for their media designs, as well as production photos which showcase their final designs!
sound design
sound design
Professor Dan Jaquette, assisted by student designers Sophia Rodriguez and Mary Morgan, comprise the sound design team. From Dan Jaquette:
"The sound design for Healing Wars is influenced by the dynamics of the war-time experience, as told through Liz Lerman's script. The play calls for an explosion one moment, and an intimate and tender moment the next. As a result, the sound design goes to the dynamic extremes, pairing extremely loud and surprising content with quiet, more reflective textures. In order to unite the Preamble to the stage show, every soundscape heard in the Preamble is also heard somewhere in the stage show — this way, they are two halves of the same world: a world established in the Preamble that is continued onstage. My favorite moments in the sound design are where the live music and the sound design interact with one another, whether that is the sound of wind played over a piece of music or the addition of reverb to the violinist's microphone. Each of the tiny collaborations between the live music and the sound design feels precious to me!"
Here are two "sound sketches," preliminary concept designs for two moments in the Preamble. These 30-second clips are from Clara Barton's room and the Spirit room, respectively.
Digital Lobby - Spirit Room 10.30.mp3Digital Lobby - Spirit Room 10.30.mp3Page updated
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