BSR_S08E08 - HILMA - WILMA THEATER

Broad Street Review, The Podcast

HILMA

A WORLD PREMIERE PRODUCED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH NEW GEORGES
WORDS BY KATE SCELSA
MUSIC BY ROBERT M. JOHANSON
DIRECTED BY MORGAN GREEN

June 4–23, 2024

The early 20th century queer mystic and artist Hilma af Klint channeled hundreds of paintings through messages from otherworldly forces, hoping to communicate the mysteries of the universe. Only recently rediscovered and hailed as one of the first-ever abstract artists, she worked in obscurity during a time that was not yet ready to receive her message. This contemporary opera – with a score that mixes genres including opera, rock, pop, and musical theater– wrestles with the hubris and humility that fueled one woman’s spiritual quest.

Kate Scelsa – BOOKS: “Fans of the Impossible Life” (HarperCollins, 2015 Indie Next and Junior Library Guild pick), “Improbable Magic for Cynical Witches”(HarperCollins), “Luminary” (Simon&Schuster), “The Mortal Year” (forthcoming from Abrons). THEATER: “Everyone’s Fine With Virginia Woolf” (published by Dramatists Play Service, produced by Elevator Repair Service), New Georges 2017 Audrey Resident, Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation grant recipient for playwriting, performing member of Elevator Repair Service Theater since 2002 (“Gatz,” “The Sound and the Fury,” “The Select”). MUSIC: The Witch Ones (eponymous album) in collab with Robert M. Johanson and Gavin Price. For Mom.

LEARN MORE ABOUT HILMA AF KLINT: https://wilmatheater.org/blog/dramaturgy-hilma/

FOR TICKETS AND INFORMATION: https://wilmatheater.org/event/hilma/