In "The Heart of Things," a spoken word opera, text by Wanda R. Graham, soundscape by John Plant, the actors’ parts are rhythmically notated to be integrated with a score, requiring a sense of rhythm and a willingness to master the rhythms as notated. The audition is self-tape with invitation callbacks as needed. Rehearsals begin in Halifax Regional Municipality October 1, Heart opens Tuesday, October 22, closes Sunday 27, 2024.
About oppression and 'otherness' within the context of life in an outpost fishing community, roles are inclusive of cultural backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, and abilities. Ages are relative.
Les Sr, 40ish: Keeps his fishing enterprise and his heritage intact any way he can. In his spare time, he creates strange and magical objects, and seeks solace in his guitar and new women. He has two children, twins, Les Junior, and Bren, abandoned by their mother when they were three.
Les Jr, 22: Cannot perpetuate his father’s ways, because of the personal damage it has caused him, the damage it causes the environment and its threat to the future of the enterprise.
Bren, 22-23: Les Jr’s twin, aspires to be accepted as a fisher in this male-dominated culture. Bren is empathically sensitive to Junior, hopelessly in love with Casey, while keeping things straight in a potato patch and riffing on nanotechnology.
Ariel, 38: Married but unable to have children of his own, uses a disability incurred in a shark attack as a shield. He responds to the family scorn by destroying what he can't have.
Casey, 21: Intelligent fish packer with dreams ricocheting indecisively between Les Sr, Junior and Bren.
The sides (notated text and two versions of the character’s sample soundtrack) can be accessed at the button below. On one, the composer can be heard reading parts in rhythm (a guide only); the other version is the bare soundtrack. When ready, record over the bare soundtrack, then return self-tape, recent headshot and recent bio in the form below.
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The Heart of Things Production Dates