Past shows for San Francisco Zen
Center, Madonna House of Cumbermeer, Rochester Folk Art Guild , Rochester
Zen Center,
Santa Rosa Unitarian Universalist Church, Congregation Beth Sholom, the National
Theatre (Washington DC)--and theaters and schools and community centers
nationwide. Now . . .
"Superb work . . . Divine mime, lovely speaking the sprech,
wonderful waterphoning...the mime kicked ass."
--
Fred Curchack, Prince of Performance Artists!
"Great show last
night! Eliot Fintushel gave a riveting performance of his Walt Whitman show,
'Gross, Mystical.' On a slightly rainy night, there was no better place to be in
Santa Rosa. Stirring, lyrical, and packed with surprises, Eliot's performance
reminded us of how great the connection can be between great material
and great actor. In February, the show moves to the Imaginists Theater Ensemble
for a two week run. Spread the word."
". . . the Whitman performance was fantastic. What
a blend of all-American amorality and sinking/soaring immortality...sorry for
superlatives, but the music really was intoxicating. . . .
I
studied Whitman in the Poetics program and 'teach' him in my high school
classes. Hard to express what I want to say.... your performance shone light
through his epic landscape. It was very moving. You have to know that for some
of us, your poetry performance and music complete and enliven vast inner spheres
that would be dormant and incomplete without you; you fulfill your odd duty to
tending this wild, overgrown prophetic garden . . .
Thank you for the sacrifices you make to create your work and music. You're a
good actor, but I see the acting as a kind of transmitter for these giant
continents of submerged brilliance in our poets, and in Fintushel, buoyed to the
surface on waves of music."
-- Suzanne Edminster, artist and writer
"I have been deeply touched by your remarkable performance/being. I can
promise you that, in the future, I will note your performances as I consider it
a privilege to see you work."
-- Colin Lambert, sculptor (mariposastudio.net)
"The beauty of your piece, the marriage
of Whitman's words with your exultation
in them
has lingered today. Thank you."
Eliot
Fintushel,
a two-time winner of the United States National Endowment for the Arts
Solo Performer Award,
has performed solo shows at The National Theatre and innumerable venues
throughout North America.
Of his solo performance at Cornell's Seminar on the Sutras,
Leonard Cohen said,
"I was enlightened by it!"
This is a 90-minute show (including a 10-minute
intermission). It requires a performance area at least 18' wide and 12'
deep. (I'll call it "the stage" here, though, in some cases, it may not be
a raised surface.) Because the elements of expressive movement and mime
are crucial--and the musical instruments so much fun to see--the
performer should be visible head to foot from every seat. Ordinarily, no
microphone or amplification of any sort is needed.
The set comprises a single chair downstage center, a stand
with chimes and a bell, and a variety of other musical instruments pre-set
on the floor near the chair.
The capacity for dimming and blacking out stage lights is
very desirable, although the show can be performed without it. In the best
situation, in addition to house light, there are two sorts of light
available to raise or fade independently or in combination with one
another: (1) a general wash of the stage area for most of the show, and
(2) a special light for the area immediately around the chair. (The house
light, over the audience, is for their entering and leaving, and for
intermission.)
If, happily, there is lighting available as described
above, someone should be on hand (provided by the sponsor) to execute a
list of simple cues. We'll need 45 minutes or so at some point
before the show to practice the cues, which I'll send well ahead of the
show date.
Regardless of what is physically available at your space,
raked seating with proscenium and lighting instruments on a computerized
dimmer system, or a simple room with on-and-off overhead lights--or a back
yard with lawn chairs, blankets, and a tree, GROSS, MYSTICAL
can be performed to absorbing and wonderful effect. I've done this show on
beaches and street corners (for the Sonoma County Arts Council) as well as
in church halls, avant-garde basement bistros, and professional stages.
Once we're all settled and our eyes meet, the rest is filigree!
Feel free to call or email with any questions or
inspirations!