Project History: 2004 : design, production of the parts, modelling of the masks, - preparation of the projections, The concerts
Key Meanings: Tale of cruelty, evil and despotism, keeping the strict Japanese Noh tradition while making contemporary music and art
Artist Statement: The stage set was designed in a symbolic minimalist spirit - appropriate to the Japanese Noh. The main features of this rigid tradition were kept but new elements were added to allow contemporary creation. The use of symbolic sculpture and light projections is directed towards enhancing the music and the development of the plot - aiming at the creation of a total artistic interdisciplinary experience, in the tradition of the Opera.
‘Aya No Tsuzumi stage set maquette, Ran Morin August 2004
’Aya No Tsuzumi’ (The Damask Drum) , Chamber Opera in one act based on a 14th century Japanese Noh play Written & directed by Ari Ben Shabtai. Stage design and masks by Ran Morin : Tel Aviv Museum & The Jerusalem Theatre, 2004
The traditional Noh stage includes a bridge which leads from the ‘Mirror Room’ where the actors dress, to the main stage where the chorus and orchestra are placed. The background of the main stage contains a big painting of a Pine tree and along the bridge, three small pines are placed. The current design keeps this general form; The bridge is represented by three semi transparent ribbons with small images of ‘Clockwork cedar’ and in the background a big image of the sculpture is projected. In the center of the stage, a large elliptic ‘drum’ is suspended from a slanted wood beam. The drum is covered with a polyethylene clear sheet on which black and white pool waves are projected . The drum and the large drumstick echo psychological-sexual themes in the play.
The stage set was designed in a minimalist spirit - appropriate to the Japanese Noh tradition. The main features of this rigid tradition were kept but new elements were added to allow contemporary creation. The use of symbolic sculpture and light projections is directed towards enhancing the music and the development of the plot - aiming at the creation of a total artistic interdisciplinary experience in the tradition of the Opera.
