Cultural Storytellers: Sylvia Rands and John Gibson

Renee Liang chats to Sylvia Rands and John Gibson between rehearsals for The Angel and The Beloved, a new form of theatrical alchemy bringing the vision of 20th century lyric poet Rainer Maria Rilke to life with the power of music and voice.

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You may not be aware of this (unless you’re part of the ‘in crowd’ that I’m part of!), but poetry and music has a long tradition of exploration in this country. This month, the Literatti present their long awaited ‘poetry rock opera’, Rethink: Possible Worlds, an ambitious blend of original poetry, music and dance, and they have kept us up to date with their explorations on The Big Idea WIP blogs. This is the third major work by the Literatti, and it’s fair enough to say that they have been pioneers in this extension of performance poetry into the theatrical realm.

Coming from a different but related angle, The Angel and The Beloved is a new full-length work by luminaries of NZ theatre John Gibson and Sylvia Rands. Using the words of 20th century lyric poet Rainer Maria Rilke, they have blended voice, music and emotion to create an experience that cannot easily be categorized. I was lucky enough to catch John and Sylvia between rehearsals, ahead of their opening tonight.

How did you first discover Rilke?

John: A friend of mine a poet introduced me to him at university - the Duino elegies in particular translated by J B Leishman and Robert Bly’s anthology, and I have loved him ever since.

Sylvia: I studied him at Uni and John re-introduced him to me . It was the American poet Robert Bly's translations that we use in the show that wooed me.

What particular events or feelings inspired you to create this work?

John: A great friend of mine died and it was something that Sylv and I have often talked about.

Sylvia: I was looking to create new work that would allow the voice work I teach to be explored and tested in practice. The Angel and the Beloved is one of two shows planned to do this. I will start work on AIO; the noise of being in 2012. After my solo show Such Sweet Thunder based on Shakespeare, John and I thought that Rilke could be the next show - and now is the time.

Has the collaboration process been smooth? What is Simon Coleman's (director) role in this process?

John: The collaboration process has been wonderful. Simon has been around in the weekends Sylvia and I directed each other initially and we have constantly invited the feedback of other friends and colleagues but Simon has been invaluable as set designer and as a director he initiated changing the piece from a collection of moments to an integrated actors piece. And his careful eye and sympathy to the material has been totally essential throughout.

Sylvia: Yes the process has been wonderful. The core of the work was put in place by John and I, and Simon has been on board for the last couple of weekends as our essential outside eye. John and I have been able to work thoroughly and deeply as we are very much on the same page in key areas - such as feeling how the text needs to breathe. The challenge of finding the right dynamic for each piece and building it into a coherent whole has been truly exciting. Simon has challenged us to look more deeply at several of the aspects - particularly our working/character relationship, as that was something we really couldn't do, or see on our own.

As producer he has been my rock through the whole process; the design came early and he has been an invaluable part of the team. His theatrical instinct is superb and I am very grateful he was willing to collaborate with us in this way. We have also had some directorial input from Val Smith, a dancer with a somatic focus, and feedback from Vanessa Byrnes, a director colleague from Toi Whakaari. (I would question John's comment - ' we have constantly invited feedback' - it has been only these three people.)

Have you made any discoveries about the way music and voice work together?

John: Actually Sylv and I have been working on ideas around voice and music our entire careers. This was the one area we felt utterly confident about. Making a satisfying journey or story arc was an unknown although Sylvia had already achieved an extraordinary union of a personal story and others words In Such Sweet Thunder.

I have always been obsessed about the meaning of sound and I have tested many ideas around this in the theatre I believe there is a totally natural connection between music and poetry. If you think of sound and silence being natural equivalents of life and death you will get some idea of how music can be free to make poetry clear in a way that doesn’t compromise the integrity of either.

Sylvia: I agree with John. For me the word and sound are deeply linked, although in everyday speech, where feeling is not prioritised, that connection can be lost . Speech is a left-brain faculty whereas sound, music and feeling are right-brain. Much good art balances these two aspects, and the music and imagery within poetry already makes it a form of expression which has greater ability to move us and move words beyond the mundane.

Does having been a married couple in real life affect the way you collaborate? Do you ever turn 'off' the collaboration, or does the work continue 24 hours?

John: We were a married couple and it is has been wonderful rediscovering where we are now, what we have both learned since and the common areas we have individually explored. Sylv and I have always had the greatest respect for each other. I wanted to do the show mainly as a fan of Sylvia’s work. We know each other’s tenacity as workers but we also understand when we both turn up late but start in real terms at the exact time. Through our other commitments we have had a very short time to make this but our ability to go quickly to the heart of whatever task, be it copywriting a press release or writing a song has been essential.

Sylvia: Yes, John and I have been divorced since 1992 but have remained good friends. It has been a real joy to work with John on this project as I have such admiration for his incredible gifts as musician, performer and composer. Our history has allowed us to challenge each other quite honestly and I think the work has benefited from this rigor. It is also a lovely treat to have our son Theo co-ordinating the AV and running the show. The AV works through a software programme called Isadora that Theo learnt about working with John's partner Shona McCullagh.

The work is based on the translations from German by Robert Bly. Has the text come easily 'off the page' and onto stage, or have you had to make adjustments?

John: Very easily. Sylvia had a very coherent structure to begin with. The trick has not been finding ways to get the work off the page, because I think we have both shared a common vision of Rilke’s work as a natural and extraordinary vision of life which above all we felt was timely for an audience now, but in making a full length work that had a flow and a journey and could be felt and understood easily by an audience. We have repeated the odd line but have kept very faithful to the shape and forms of the translations. A successful song of a complex poem has to completely project the idea of the original and most importantly slow it down so it can be understood naturally as music.

Sylvia: Yes, to John! Personally Rilke's text has been challenging at times to bring fully alive, as it is very dense. It is full of riches that one needs to mine while also making it fully accessible and contemporary to an audience. It is a particular world with its own rhythms and complexities. Rilke writes with a blend of great insight, imagery, wit and passion - so it is a real work-out for the actor.

How do you hope audiences will respond to this work?

John: We hope they will love it.

Sylvia: For sure - we would love people to be inspired, moved, soothed, challenged - I think people will have a very personal response to the work as it awakens different things for different people.

You mention that the work is the journey of a person or soul. What do you mean by this?

John: Sylvia’s wonderful grasp through her voice work of the concrete nature of growth and experience has been crucial here. A sense of the four elements, earth, water, fire and air and their positive and negative aspects as realities in the world has shaped everything, and actually made the structure and feel of the show totally and easily musical.

Sylvia: The title The Angel and the Beloved can imply a narrative, and perhaps two characters - but it is not a narrative or journey of two specific people - rather a journey through human experience - but on the level of the inner self, not the self in the world. This is why we call it a soul's journey.

What's next for both of you?

John: Finishing a massive orchestral documentary on the Shackleton Expedition, several plays and short films further writing of my own work, a project with Michael Hurst and a cast of over 60 year olds performing The Wasteland and above all else, tomorrow.

Sylvia: Rest !! - this has been a long two-year journey putting this in place. Promoting The Angel and the Beloved to festivals / other venues, running my vocal practice and voice workshops , gently beginning work on next year's show AIO , and the great actor's void - waiting for some exciting work to turn up !

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Location/venue:

Hopetoun Alpha, 19 Hopetoun St (off K Rd)

Date:

5 Oct 2011 - 16 Oct 2011

Cost:

Full: $30.00 Conc: $25.00

Entry details:

Monday and Tuesday 6.30pm

Wednesday - Saturday 8.00pm

Sunday 4.00pm

book at iTICKET ph 09 3611000 www.iticket.co.nz