Art, Choreography and Music collide Sunday April 30th at the Acorn Theatre with a live performance of ‘Immersive Dance, Art, & Music Fusion’. The idea was created by area artist Pam Kirkham and features her colorful, nature-based imagery as a backdrop to live dance performed by Carolyn Pampalone Rabbers. The scene is set to music and ambient sounds performed, mixed and composed by Silver Rain which features Mitch Gregory and Debra Sawyer.
The idea for this show came to Pam during the Covid lockdown as a way to showcase her body of work while employing other artists to create something new and unique.
“During Covid I remember wondering what I could do since I couldn’t perform music or sell my art. Immersive Van Gogh in Chicago had made a huge impression on me and I began thinking of ways I could do something similar with my art. I didn’t have 32 projectors or the technology to pull off something totally immersive, but I did have a large body of work and thought I could do a similar event on a smaller scale with music and a live dancer,” Pam explains. “I also wanted to employ composers and a dancer, especially after the performing arts had been so impacted by Covid. My dreams were realized when I applied for and received a KADI grant (Kalamazoo Artistic Development Initiative) from The Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo for the idea.”
The Acorn Theater performance will be the first time this project is presented to a live audience. The original idea for this event was to have it performed live, but due to Covid the initial version of the project was filmed featuring Carolyn dancing in front of a projection of Pam’s hand-painted images. The images, from two series of her paintings, the first ‘Fight or Flight’ and the second ‘Water, Altitude, & Atmosphere’ set the tone for the feel of the show.
“Fight or Flight is based on the idea that when facing a difficult time in your life, you have two choices. You can either fight against your life struggles and be miserable, or you can choose to momentarily escape from your troubles by re-centering yourself, to be in a more positive frame of mind,” Pam explains. “Water, Altitude, & Atmosphere takes you to places that you might want to be as you take an inner journey. Images include waves, land and seascapes, majestic mountains, and serene places in nature.”
The musical score was written and performed by Silver Rain. Pam provided them with the order of the visuals to compose
the music to. In the final mix of the recordings for the performance they added a layer of sounds from nature, such as birds, insects, wind and water.
“As I began to get the initial project together, I thought carefully about what the music should sound like and who should compose the music to go with my artwork. The music had to be meditative and follow the ebb and flow of the progression of the slideshow,” says Pam. “I reached out to my fellow musicians, Mitch Gregory (guitar, mixing, & recording) and Debra Sawyer (harpist). Together, as Silver Rain, we composed and recorded the score, which features a bluesy style and skillfully accentuates the art.”
The keystone for this project was the dancer. Pam wanted someone whose dance could give weigh to the art while capturing the audience’s attention. She ultimately chose Carolyn Pampalone Rabbers after seeing her in a performance of Corey Terry & The Wellspring Dancers in Kalamazoo. She says she was captured by Carolyn’s graceful movement and expressiveness.
The ultimate goal of the show is to have the viewer become a part of the performance so that it resonates with what someone may be going through. Also, she hopes it sparks ideas in other artists to try projects they only dreamed about.
“If you’re facing something serious, my hope is that this production will help you heal yourself from the inside out. I want everyone to feel the positive energy from the performances and feel uplifted,” she says. “It is also my hope this inspires younger artist to think big and pursue their dreams. During COVID I thought about what was the biggest thing I could do, maybe this will spark that in others as well.”
‘Immersive Dance, Art, & Music Fusion’ takes place Sunday April 30th at 4pm at The Acorn Theatre. This event will also be held during the last day of Art Attack in Harbor Country. For ticket information visit https://www.acornlive.org/events/good-vibes/ For more info on Pam Kirkham’s award-winning art visit www.pamkirkham.com.
By Julee Laurent
MOTM Contributor
