Hollow Hearth

Hollow Hearth | March 12 & 15, 2024

By Colleen Bayati

Hollow Hearth is a musical performance about a group of travellers on an unknown mission that sing wondrous tales of adventure around a fire each night. The travellers consist of The Navigator (TJ Tan), The Wrangler (Sarah Carter), The Merchant (Georgia Turner), The Fortune Teller (Marissa Capron), The Tinkerer (Elijah Sam), and The Tourist (Sara van Gaalen). Though they don’t all get along on the journey, they each tell a tale by the fire of grandiose people, some building off others’ stories; they play with the reality of the space. The central character is the Playmaker (Colleen Bayati), the activator of the travellers’ stories; they orchestrate the movement and the players of the story through song, art, and puppetry in the background of scenes. It is an epic show about desire, loss, hope, and the human condition at the crossroads of time and space. Through modes of musical-style song, puppetry, and metanarrative dialogue, Hollow Hearth examines themes of loneliness, violence, isolation, and questions the integrity of human agency. 

Cast & Crew

Lead Artist / Composer: Colleen Bayati

Performers: Colleen Bayati, Terris J. Tan, Sarah Carter, Georgia Turner, Sara van Gaalen, Marissa Capron, Elijah Sam

Choreographer: Brynne Harper

Musical Director: Aidan Edwards

Production Designer: Evelyn Tong

Assistant Prop Maker: Katie Voth

Assistant Producer: Zack Faulks

Lighting Designer: Zuzanna Liniewski

Stage Manager: Kirsi Jiao

Operators: Marianne Gagnon, Zoë Larson 

Performed as part of the SFU Live Acts Festival 2024.