FEINSTEIN’S/54 BELOW, Broadway’s Supper Club, presents The Empress Arias: songs from the ICONS/IDOLS plays, on February 8.
ICONS/IDOLS is a tetralogy of choral plays for over a dozen women+ singers. Mixing music, movement and text, the four plays recover the secret history of Byzantine Purple Empresses as they ascend in a society with deep animosity towards female rule. Deeply committed to religious icons, these powerful empresses sacrifice personal relationships in an attempt to gain enough power to re-introduce them into an empire that fiercely and violently opposes iconography. The Empress Arias pair powerful multi-part harmonies with glittering ballads, commanding chants and soaring operatic solos to form a unique and beautiful evening of song. The development of ICONS/IDOLS received funding from OPERA America’s Opera Grants for Female Composers program, supported by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, and has been developed in The Jam, New Georges’ performance lab for early career female artists, as well as The Tank, a home for emerging artists. The project is currently supported by the IRT/New Ohio Archive Residency for its 2018-2020 cycle.
The Byzantine Choral Project is a dynamic collaboration between playwright Helen Banner, composer Grace Oberhofer and director Colette Robert to make theater using women’s voices. Inspired by the Byzantine Empresses Irene, Maria, Euphrosyne and Theodora they are creating work that showcases the radical power of strong, diverse women+ singing on stage and explores the importance of imagery, representation, and iconoclasm in classical and contemporary life. They are privileged to collaborate with music director Robert Frost, and have previously worked with stellar performers such as Broadway veteran Julie Benko (Les Mis, Fiddler), Rachael Duddy (vocalist for Esperanza Spalding), Iris Beaumier (featured on Blindspot, last seen at Feinstein’s/54 Below with 54 Sings Memphis), Isabella Dawis, and Joell Weil, among others.
The Empress Arias plays Feinstein’s/54 Below (254 West 54th Street) on February 8th at 9:30pm. There is a $35 cover charge and $25 food and beverage minimum. Tickets and information are available at www.54Below.com. Tickets on the day of performance after 4:00 are only available by calling (646) 476-3551.