BIOME (2007)
A corporal, visual and audio exploration of desire and yearning in the forest canopy.
“A dancer unfurls herself towards the Sun, capturing with uncanny precision the jerky grace of a plant in a time-lapse movie. Another creeps, vine-like, up a huge tree; yet more lithe bodies cram themselves into a hollow trunk, like a colony of fungal parasites. ”
“a reverie on nature’s communion with itself and our interconnectedness to a fragile ecosystem.”
“explores the relationship between the leafy canopy above and the world below...enlightening and entertaining”
“Every so often I would catch sight of Lomask dangling from virgin Douglas-firs on a rope the width of my thumb, gracefully building the movement lexicon for “biome.””
“The message of environmental preservation was clear.... to show the conections shared by all living organisms in nature, including humans.”
About biome
The Impetus
Through the ‘biome’ project, we explored the cooperation and communication which occurs between different species in nature. Our show gives audiences a corporal, visual, and audio experience of the great interconnected web within the forest.
The Process and Creative Team
To achieve this, we focused specifically on the cloud forest of Costa Rica where we engaged in a creative retreat in 2006. The dancers and choreographer met regularly with local canopy tree biologists and ecologists who are studying the canopy and the wildlife that interacts there. We used critical scientific information as a portal through which to connect more deeply with the spirit and poetry of the forest. Our show encourages a sense of preciousness and mystery around wild spaces in nature – and potentially a resounding commitment to preservation.
Artistic Director Jodi Lomask worked with Lead Scientific Adviser and Ecologist Dr. Nalini Nadkarni, Costume Designer Kimie Sako, Filmmaker Amy Harrison, Sound Editor Roberto Salvatore, Sound Director Michael Zbyszynski, Video Artist Nate Pagel, Cameraman Daniel Zox, and the Capacitor performers, Cari Delaplane, Oscar Trujillo, Jocelyn Rudig, Nathan Brumbaugh, and Zack Bernstein.
The Experience
Capacitor created a performance which included a modular set that becomes a cutaway of the forest floor, a stand of trees, and the stems of tender new growth. The performers transform from leaf-cutter ants to families of monkeys, from leaves to droplets of water, and insects to tangling vines. The performers live out a fantasy that many audience members wished they could.
Educational Program
biome is often introduced by lead scientific adviser Dr Nalini Nadkarni with a 20 minute talk about the forest canopy.
Capacitor Presents: Biome preforming in Seattle
May 29th and 30th, 2009
Camera and Edit by Aaron Meola.