Dante Development Blog

Synthesis

— Ben Cunis, Dante

It’s almost showtime. I’m sure for all actors an impending opening is accompanied with a different sort of anxiety or excitement. We each have our own habits and ways of preparing for that first big crowd: rituals, warmups, prayers and various well-wishings. A theatrical opening is an amazing thing – a sort of convalescence of elements large and small: a shaft of light placed just right here, a gesture in silence that follows the heart-pounding dance, a little detail on a dress, the opening of a door as the music changes, the shift in demeanor on someone’s face – they all add up to something greater than their sum…somehow. No wonder I often find myself praying before the lights go down.

I was going to write this entry about how everything comes together, but I realized I don’t think I entirely understand how everything comes together. I know that there is a lot of putting on gym clothes and kneepads, a lot of bruising, and the occasional moment of shock that you spend in the corner after doing that scene, that one scene that just gets to you. There are costume fittings that make you look at yourself differently and moments spent wading through clouds of foam dust as the sculptors make those crazed stalactites. I know the rush of adrenaline and the emptying of your mind that comes when you finally know the choreography to the fight – and then have to do it twice as fast.

There’s always the sound of someone breathing hard. There is always that indomitable pair of Paata and Irina pushing us further and further and themselves the furthest.

This is my third year with the company, and my 8th consecutive show here. I will say without hesitation that I’ve had some of the best times of my life here, learned more about creating theater, about acting, telling stories, and using every resource to its fullest potential, than in any other time in my life. There are aches and pains, certainly (ibuprofen is a close companion), there are struggles with props and bodies (don’t drop the girl, Cunis, whatever else), there is body paint that gets everywhere you don’t want it to get, there are missed cues and, as times change, missed friends. Despite all efforts towards safety, all experience and timing and practice, sometimes you get punched in the face (twice), fall through the trapdoor (once), get the nosebleed (not telling), or run into the set (lost count).

But somehow it comes together, and I’ve never been anything but proud of the work that we have done together, and thankful for the adventure and the fantastic companions I find myself surrounded by, as well as the amazing DC audiences that have kept this theater alive, and that seem to agree with me in thinking there is something beautiful and vital about this work.

I look forward to seeing you through the lights (unless you’re in the show, in which case if I see you through the lights, then something is seriously wrong…).

Cast Photos

Irakli Kavsadze, Macbeth, 2007 Irina Tsikurishivli, Macbeth, 2007 Ben Cunis, The Fall of the House of Usher, 2007 Philip Fletcher, Irina Tsikurishvili, Faust, 2006

Creating vs. Remounting

— Alex Mills (1st year company member)

As a newcomer to Synetic, I am continuously awed by the sheer creative energy of this company. I first came to Synetic in early July 2008, when we were preparing to start rehearsals for Caligari -- which then turned into remounting Host and Guest.

Immediately, we hit the ground running and mounted the show in about a month and a half. Since I was so new I had no idea what to expect in terms of the rehearsal process. In hindsight I see now that the creative process was a little different for a remount in comparison to the creation of an entirely new work. First off, for Host and Guest, the basic structure and choreography had already been laid out. The freshness came from the cast's unique physicality that amped up the emotional tension through intricate fight scenes and stylized movement. I had never been so physically challenged while performing a show and throughout the run I gained a broader understanding of what the company requires of its actors.

Dante has been a uniquely different experience. One of the qualities of this company that I find so amazing is the utter openness to new ideas . There are no rules limiting the actors' ability to voice their own opinions on various aspects of the show. A fleeting thought by any member of the cast could turn out to be the basis of a whole scene come next rehearsal. I also value so much the feeling of family that strengthens throughout the rehearsal process. After physically training with everyone and sharing ideas so openly a little family starts to grow allowing all involved to open up with each other. This freedom allows for some crazy ideas to unfold which usually turn out to be exciting new ways of depicting Dante's epic work.

With opening night looming ever closer a fire seems to be lit under us and progress has been non-stop. What started as various images of Hell and demonic creatures has now involved into a cohesive storyline that depicts Hell like never before. Undoubtedly, the creative process will not stop until opening night where, if all goes right, Hell will be unleashed.

Second Read Through

— Greg Marzullo Virgil

Like some of Synetic's best ensemble work - Host and Guest, The Master and Margarita, Romeo & Juliet - Dante is shaping up to be one of the most ensemble-heavy productions in the company's history. And honestly, how could it not be?

Dante's poem seems to have two main threads that run parallel to one another - the hero's journey and the stories of those he meets along the way. These elements intersect at moments crucial to Dante's enlightenment. The recognition of souls in hell serves to deepen Dante's compassionate humanity or reinforce his union with divine will (or, in a more self-serving way, these encounters are Dante's comeuppance for political enemies).

Improvisation is a touchstone of Synetic's rehearsal process, and in the earlier stages of development, Ben Cunis, who plays Dante, and I have spent a good deal of time watching scenes take shape. There are times when I've literally been put off my lunch or have had shivers running up and down my spine at the unfolding horror - and all this in a fluorescent-lit rehearsal room with actors wearing sweats and tank tops.

Particularly disturbing at this point are the punishments for the gluttons, the lustful and the mass murderers, but as in the original poem, it's not just the manifested torments that makes one think about staying on the straight and narrow - it's the endless nature of the agonies endured by these lost souls. During rehearsals, we've spent time creating hellish images only to scrap them completely, because there wasn't enough suffering, because sometimes the punishment seemed too much like a blessing.

Interestingly, Dante really developed something called "contrapasso," wherein souls are punished accordingly with their sins. For example, the diviners have their heads screwed on backwards, weeping down their backs. In life, they tried to look far into the future against God's will, so in death, they are no longer allowed to look forward. Hell's torments then are a horrific extension of our choices in life. Onstage, it's a question of looking to life for inspiration and then expanding those experiences into something terrifying surreal.

Synetic's artistry works particularly well for some of the blackest parts of the human psyche - the dark obsession of Don Jose in Carmen, Medea's murderous revenge in Jason and the Argonauts, and the damning hedonism of Faust. Yet, even for a Synetic show, the themes of Dante's Inferno are pretty bleak - all the horrors of the world, from intimate betrayals to vast obliterations, are compressed into one work. Despite confronting the tragedy of the world, I remain surprised and heartened when the actors get up from being harassed by demons in unspeakable ways only to laugh with their compatriots, snack on some chocolate, and play keep-away.

As for those "principal" actors, we're hammering out how to tell this story in a way that connects to the audience. Most importantly, Dante is the public's window into a world of madness and despair; they must recognize themselves in him and feel his pain, temptation, and eventual redemption. Not an easy task for an actor and one that can take an emotional toll, and Mr. Cunis continues to explore creative ways to become part of the action while plumbing the psychological depths.

As for Virgil, I return to the great scholar Joseph Campbell for inspiration. In his seminal work The Hero With a Thousand Faces, he charts the hero's journey as a series of specific steps that lead to his/her self-actualization. Campbell labels one of those elements"supernatural aid," where someone with special powers appears to the hero to lead him/her further into his/her personal journey. Interestingly, this figure isn't always beneficent. The supernatural aid can be of the tough love variety, and Dante's Virgil does have his moments where he pushes the hero hard so that he might reach his ultimate goal - union with divine love.

More Costume and Set Sketches

These images are costume and set sketches by our designer, Anastasia Simes. They are the concept basis off of which the set and wardrobe elements are being designed.

First Read Through

— Greg Marzullo Virgil

Starting a Synetic show is perhaps where the most creative aspects of the process lie. Although we walk into these initial stages with an understanding of what the upcoming story is and where it needs to go, all options are on the table, and therefore nothing is holy writ. This allows the actors, director, and choreographer to have free reign over artistic choices related to the visual line and emotional expression of the piece.

Approaching Dante has, so far, been one of the more challenging adaptations of my experiences with the company. The great Italian poet's epic work was a groundbreaking piece of literature that remains a potent piece of art, yet despite its powerful visual descriptions and spellbinding philosophical/theological implications, changing this into an equally strong theatrical piece is no mean feat.

The work has been taking place on two fronts. Under the guidance of choreographer Irina Tsikurishvili, the Synetic ensemble has been playing with different expressions of hellish torment. Searching through the imagery of 19th-century French artist Gustav Dore, whose images of The Divine Comedy are iconic, as well as those of 15th- and 16th-century Netherlands painter Hieronymus Bosch and others, the team has been playing with concepts of punishment not just as horror-film creepiness, but as emotional agony and degradation. This is a direct reflection of Dante's vision where the ghastly retribution is ultimately a shallow reflection in the face of the greatest torture of all: never being able to attain union with God.

Meanwhile, a smaller team, consisting of director Paata Tsikurishvili, vocal coach Elizabeth van den Berg, actor Ben Cunis, who's playing Dante, as well as myself, have been combing through Nathan Weinberger's adaptation. Checking it against the text, talking with Paata about his vision for the piece, and critiquing it as actors, this group has been working on creating a story arc that will give honor to Dante's work while opening it up to a resonance with a theatrical audience.

Having been around Synetic for a while, I like to remind myself and others that what we come up with now will have very little to do with the finished product. (Usually, I say something more like, "Don't worry. We'll be doing Hello, Dolly before it's all over.") After performing in Bohemians, I learned the valuable spiritual lesson of non-attachment. Paata called me at three in the morning on opening day and told me to come to the theater in the afternoon, because he was radically changing the ending. It was all for the best, and because of that change, the show worked beautifully. So, it's interesting to note that the beginning of a Synetic rehearsal process and the end aren't as different as one might suspect.

Costume and Set Sketches

These images are costume and set sketches by our designer, Anastasia Simes. They are the concept basis off of which the set and wardrobe elements are being designed.