A dialogue between a movie, a cello and a text
Zena Zezza presents a live performance by Paris-based cellist Sonia Wieder-Atherton expressive of her enduring collaboration with filmmaker Chantal Akerman.
Tuesday, May 1, 2018: 7pm
Wednesday, May 2, 2018: 7pm
PNCA Mediatheque
Wednesday, May 2, 2018: 5pm
Sonia Wieder-Atherton in conversation with Sandra Percival
Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education
Sonia Wieder-Atherton imagined CHANTAL? as a performance structured around an absence — the filmmaker Chantal Akerman (1950-2015), represented on stage by her first film and excerpts from one of her books —and a presence—the stellar cellist Sonia Wieder-Atherton, her companion and collaborator for many years, who "imagined" this dialogue:
“I wanted to play along with her, her every move, her silences, her dancing at once burlesque and deadly serious, her anxiety as she is humming little tunes. Tracking her, surprising her, surprising myself at each step. It begins with Bartok’s "Sonata for Solo Violin" (1944), transcribed here for the cello. This is followed by a child’s voice singing softly at first, then getting louder: Chantal’s voice in "Saute ma ville" (1968)… After the explosion, "A Family in Brussels" (1998) gently slips its way between the notes and the images…” — Sonia Wieder-Atherton
Curated and produced by Sandra Percival, Zena Zezza with the Fondation Chantal Akerman.
West coast performances of CHANTAL?:
Los Angeles: April 23, 8:30pm, at REDCAT
Seattle: April 29, 7pm, at Northwest Film Forum with On the Boards
CHANTAL? is the final performance in a series of five "Dialogues" which included a live performance of Akerman's staged reading "Ma mere rit" (My Mother Laughs) by actor Grace Carter.
Most gracious thanks to Sonia Wieder-Atherton for conversations on the work of Chantal Akerman and their collaboration since the origins of Zena's project in 2016. Thanks to Renaud Bouchard-Gonzalez who has produced CHANTAL? with Sonia Wieder-Atherton.
CHANTAL? is supported by the Regional Arts & Culture Council; the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States; and Zena's supporters with special thanks to our Artist Project Season Patrons, Founding Friends and Event Producers.
Generous in-kind support has been provided by Zena's academic and cultural partners—PNCA, Third Angle New Music and the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education.
The Northwest Film Center has been Zena's co-presenter of LOOKING, REALLY LOOKING! "The Films of Chantal Akerman" (June 17, 2016-May 17, 2017)—Zena Zezza's artist project season on the work of Belgian/French filmmaker, Chantal Akerman (1950-2015).
Tuesday, May 1, 2018: 7pm
Wednesday, May 2, 2018: 7pm
PNCA Mediatheque
Wednesday, May 2, 2018: 5pm
Sonia Wieder-Atherton in conversation with Sandra Percival
Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education
Sonia Wieder-Atherton imagined CHANTAL? as a performance structured around an absence — the filmmaker Chantal Akerman (1950-2015), represented on stage by her first film and excerpts from one of her books —and a presence—the stellar cellist Sonia Wieder-Atherton, her companion and collaborator for many years, who "imagined" this dialogue:
“I wanted to play along with her, her every move, her silences, her dancing at once burlesque and deadly serious, her anxiety as she is humming little tunes. Tracking her, surprising her, surprising myself at each step. It begins with Bartok’s "Sonata for Solo Violin" (1944), transcribed here for the cello. This is followed by a child’s voice singing softly at first, then getting louder: Chantal’s voice in "Saute ma ville" (1968)… After the explosion, "A Family in Brussels" (1998) gently slips its way between the notes and the images…” — Sonia Wieder-Atherton
Curated and produced by Sandra Percival, Zena Zezza with the Fondation Chantal Akerman.
West coast performances of CHANTAL?:
Los Angeles: April 23, 8:30pm, at REDCAT
Seattle: April 29, 7pm, at Northwest Film Forum with On the Boards
CHANTAL? is the final performance in a series of five "Dialogues" which included a live performance of Akerman's staged reading "Ma mere rit" (My Mother Laughs) by actor Grace Carter.
Most gracious thanks to Sonia Wieder-Atherton for conversations on the work of Chantal Akerman and their collaboration since the origins of Zena's project in 2016. Thanks to Renaud Bouchard-Gonzalez who has produced CHANTAL? with Sonia Wieder-Atherton.
CHANTAL? is supported by the Regional Arts & Culture Council; the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States; and Zena's supporters with special thanks to our Artist Project Season Patrons, Founding Friends and Event Producers.
Generous in-kind support has been provided by Zena's academic and cultural partners—PNCA, Third Angle New Music and the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education.
The Northwest Film Center has been Zena's co-presenter of LOOKING, REALLY LOOKING! "The Films of Chantal Akerman" (June 17, 2016-May 17, 2017)—Zena Zezza's artist project season on the work of Belgian/French filmmaker, Chantal Akerman (1950-2015).
CHANTAL?, Sonia Wieder-Atherton on cello in the frame of Chantal Akerman's film "Saute ma ville" (1968). Photo courtesy Fondation Chantal Akerman