The Soap Factory & Walker Art Center to Present WISE BLOOD

Visual artist Chris Larson and composer Anthony Gatto join forces to bring the darkly humorous world of Flannery O'Connor's WISE BLOOD to life. Set in The Soap Factory, the post-industrial beauty of a 130-year-old factory turned art gallery, this wild and immersive opera-exhibition takes the audience on an intimate journey alongside the oftentimes eccentric and always captivating characters of this Southern Gothic tale. In this promenade style performance, audience is guided with the characters directly into, around, and through the galleries that feature large scale installation pieces, kinetic sculptures, and live music.

Directed by Twin Cities' favorite and Open Eye Figure Theatre founder Michael Sommers, WISE BLOOD features a diverse cast of performers including celebrated New York opera tenor Martin Bakari, baritone Brian Major, Zoo Animal's Holly Hansen, New York-based singer Gelsey Bell, Baroque music master David Echelard, actor Jason Paul Andrews, and other special guests. The Adam Meckler Orchestra provides the core musical accompaniment to this masterful story of redemption and retribution in 1950s America.

WISE BLOOD

Michael Sommers: Director

Chris Larson: Co-Creator/Set and Installation Designer

Anthony Gatto: Co-Creator/Composer

Libretto by Anthony Gatto, all text by Flannery O'Connor from the novel Wise Blood

David Bloom: Music Director

Cast:

Martin Bakari (New York) - Hazel Motes

Holly Hansen (Minneapolis) - Sabbath Lily Hawks

Brian Major (Philadelphia) - Asa Hawks

Gelsey Bell - (New York) - Mrs. Wally Bee Hitchcock/Mrs. Flood

David Echelard (Minneapolis) - Onnie Jay Holy

Jason Paul Andrews (New York) - Enoch Emery

WISE BLOOD performances run in conjunction with Chris Larson's installation and sound design at The Soap Factory, which will be an ongoing exhibit, open from May 9 to June 15, 2015 during regular exhibition hours. Rehearsals will take place in the space beginning May 21st during gallery hours and the public will be invited to watch and participate when appropriate. Gallery hours are 1-7pm Wednesdays-Fridays and 12-5pm Sundays.

This new original work is co- presented and co-commissioned by The Soap Factory (Minneapolis) and The Walker Art Center (Minneapolis).

The Soap Factory is happy to announce the acceptance of our WISE BLOOD project application into the Art Basel Crowdfunding Initiative Program. The Soap Factory's project is the 13th in the world to be selected by the program and the only project to be selected in the Midwest. The Kickstarter campaign will launch on March 12, 2015, 10AM CST. https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/1673676643

Art Basel launched an exciting new digital initiative in partnership with Kickstarter, the funding platform for creative projects. The initiative hopes to provide visibility and financial support to a wide variety of artistic projects from non-profit institutions, including exhibitions, public installations, films, artist books, education programs, artist residencies, talks, conservation and archiving, and other innovative art projects. They are selected by an independent jury formed from non-profit spaces, comprised of Hammad Nasar, curator, writer and Head of Research and Programmes at the Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong; Glenn Phillips, Acting Head of the Department of Architecture and Contemporary Art at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles; and Mari Spirito, Founding Director of Protocinema, Istanbul and New York. https://www.artbasel.com/crowdfunding

Art Basel stages the world's premier art shows for Modern and contemporary works in Basel, Miami Beach and Hong Kong. The projects featured below are part of a newly launched initiative to generate support for select visual arts projects worldwide. Projects are proposed by non-profit arts organizations and selected by our jury - Hammad Nasar, Asia Art Archive; Glenn Phillips, Getty Research Institute; and Mari Spirito, Protocinema. https://www.kickstarter.com/pages/artbasel

The kickstarter campaign is to raise funds for WISE BLOOD, a wild and immersive opera-theater. Visual artist Chris Larson and composer Anthony Gatto join forces to bring the darkly humorous world of Flannery O'Connor's WISE BLOOD to life. Set in the post-industrial beauty of a 130 year old factory turned art gallery, this immersive opera takes the audience on an intimate journey alongside the oftentimes eccentric and always captivating characters of this story. The audience is brought directly into, around and through large scale installation pieces, kinetic sculptures, projections and live music. WISE BLOOD features a diverse cast of performers including Hüsker Dü founding member Grant Hart, celebrated opera tenor Martin Bakari, Zoo Animal's Holly Hansen, Twin Cities' theater favorite Michael Sommers and more. The musicians of the Adam Meckler Orchestra provide the musical core to this Southern Gothic tale. http://www.soapfactory.org/exhibit.php?content_id=684 About

The Walker Art Center is a catalyst for the creative expression of artists and the active engagement of audiences. Focusing on the visual, performing, and media arts of our time, the Walker takes a global, multidisciplinary, and diverse approach to the creation, presentation, interpretation, collection, and preservation of art. Walker programs examine the questions that shape and inspire us as individuals, cultures, and communities. http://www.walkerart.org