La Tempesta
An international series of experimental music, dance and media performances, inspired by The Tempest, William Shakespeare’s mystical masterwork
One of his most frequently produced plays, William Shakespeare’s mystical masterwork The Tempest has spawned numerous adaptations and derivative works, including operas, films, novels and visual art.
La Tempesta was presented in Italy and California as part of Vortex, a 2016–2018 series of performance projects developed in collaboration with a transdisciplinary international group of artists, scholars and students. Our concept takes excerpts from the text of The Tempest, along with other sources, as inspiration to reflect on relationships between humans and oceans. Situating ourselves on Shakespeare’s mysterious island, we respond to contrasts and complexities of the coastal interface using music, dance and digital media projections.
La Tempesta
Experimental Media Performance Lab
Teatro Traetta
Teatro Forma
Creative Team
Co-Directors
Riccardo Santoboni, Lisa Naugle and John Crawford
Composers
Tom Beyer, Luigi Capuano, Gianni Francia, Massimo Gianfreda, ChanJi Kim, Rosalba Lamacchia, Linda Marcel, Davide Remigio, Riccardo Santoboni, Alberto Signorile, Francesco Vitucci
Conductor (California)
Stephen Tucker
Musicians (California)
Nando Di Modugno, Jonathan Lee, Li-Mei Liang, Katie Nguyen
Conductor (Italy)
Gregorio Goffredo
Musicians (Italy)
Nando Di Modugno, Francesco D'Orazio, Nicola Fiorino, Leonardo Grittani
Sound Engineer (Italy)
Matteo Cavallo
Choreographer
Lisa Naugle
Dancers (2017)
Edgar Aquirre, John Barclay, Kira Bessey, Danae Husary, Laman Musayeva, Sarina Ramirez-Ortiz, Waeli Wang
Dancers (2016)
Annika Alejo, Leslie Bitong, Emily Guerard, Simon Harrison, Francesca Lee, Katie Summers, Peri Trono, Emma Walsh, Koryn Wicks
Additional Choreography
Kira Bessey, Leslie Bitong, Francesca Lee, Sarina Ramirez-Ortiz, Koryn Wicks
Assistant Rehearsal Director
Kira Bessey
Costumes
Lisa Naugle, Julie Keen Leavenworth
Concept & Video Design
John Crawford
Additional Text
Julia Lupton, Colby Gordon
Video Performers
Carl Cubero, Brynna Gallagher, Simon Harrison, Nicole Vitale, Giulia Vittori, Yaya Zhang
Narrator (Italy)
Luca Simonetti
Lighting
Morgan Embry
Technical Director
Bruce Warner
Production & Media Assistants
Allison Eversoll, Brandi Kelley, Sukanya Kumar, Jacob Machmer, Parshant Mahbubani, Robyn O'Dell
With Support From
Image credit: John Crawford