She Breathes Fire (Workshop Presentation)

She Breathes Fire takes place in the fantasy world of Shey. The world is occupied by Saeya, a race of women who are the birthers of the earth. Saeya live exceedingly long lives and have magic powers based on their connection to the land. In the age prior, a patriarchal race of men had taken control of Shey and the Saeya unified to seize back control in what is now known as “The Last War.”

About:

She Breathes Fire dismantles patriarchal systems and toxic gender binaries by recontextualizing the Hero’s Journey through a feminist lens. Join us on November 2nd at HERE Arts for a workshop presentation of the latest iteration of She Breathes Fire. The She Breathes Fire universe is a structure used by composer, Stacy Busch, to generate an array of music and performances that all explore a larger narrative theme and extended uses of the voice. The first iteration was written for women’s vocal octet and electronics, and premiered in October 2023 in partnership with Owen/Cox Dance Group.

This time, there is no separation between vocalist and dancer. The movers and singers leave their usual “primary artistic discipline” at the door, and enter the world of She Breathes Fire as one body. We invite you to do the same – come with an open mind and and open heart, and offer your feedback on this very early draft of what we hope will become a full operatic cycle!

A note from the composer:

Compositionally, I am challenged by the concept of scoring the opera entirely using the voice. While it is written for voice and electronics, all of the electronics are created using vocal samples from the cast so that every sound created is, in fact, the voice. I see that there is a misconception of what electronic music sounds like and what spaces it occupies. I use electronics to create sound worlds that feel natural and expand on thoughts and emotions that make up the human experience. Additionally, many of the sounds created via electronics are not recognizable as the human voice and therefore push the understanding of how the voice may be used.

Concept and Music by Stacy Busch

Music Direction by Mila Henry and Neal Long

Choreographed by Oscar Trujillo

Co-Produced by The Why Collective

Performers: Mirai Shinde, Emara Neymour Jackson, Abagael Cheng, Uilalani Marx, Marie Lloyd Paspe, Sam McReynolds, Alexis Borth, Lukas Papenfusscline, and Sydney Anderson