A carnival spectacle retelling the tales of some of the boldest, sexiest, most intriguing women of history & fiction. An emotional & human twist on fantastic characters you thought you knew. A spectacular fusion of dance and theater. Musee des Femmes ran 6 sold out nights at the historic Ivar Theater in Hollywood, March 5- 14, 2004.
ACT I Ringmaster
Ra: Brad Miller
The Goddess Kali
The Indian Goddess
Kali, the Hindu triple Goddess of creation, preservation, and destruction
is the animating force of Shiva, the destroyer and lord of the Dance.
She is the insatiable hunger of time that births then devours. She is
the absence of ego and shame.
Dancers: Katherine, Nicolette Henry, Sayaka
Mata Hari – The Seductive Spy
"I am a woman who enjoys herself very much; sometimes I lose, sometimes I win." – Mata Hari
In her prime, Mata Hari was the toast
of Paris— not only an intelligent and arrogant woman with a painful
and abusive past but a celebrated dancer and courtesan whose seductive
movements captivated the imaginations and hearts of an entire continent.
Convicted as a German spy in WWI she was executed by the French in 1917,
though her prosecutor admitted to “not having enough evidence
to flog a cat”. Her trial is still a maze of speculation and inconclusive
evidence with few witnesses. Denounced by everyone around her, including
the love of her life, Vadim, she was left to die alone with no one to
even claim her body afterwards. The impression remains that she was
used as a scapegoat by the French government in a desperate attempt
to seem victorious.
Dancers: Tatianna, Mitchel Evans The Snow Queen
"...she had kissed away all
feeling of cold from his body, & his heart was a lump of ice."
– Hans Christian Anderson's "Snow Queen"
The Snow Queen was originated by Hans Christian Anderson & later adapted as The White Witch in the Narnia Chronicles. Both tell of an evil, cruel queen who is hateful of children & wishes to erase their memories, but neither story explains why. In our interpretation the SNow Queen is forced to face her memory of a traumatic occurrence in her own childhood that has pushed her into a world of denial & hate.
Dancer: Cassandra The Red Shoes
"She wore beautiful red morocco
shoes…Dance you shall…Dance in your red shoes till you are
pale and cold, till your skin shrivels up and you are a skeleton!"
– Hans Christian Anderson
Another Anderson story, this was a peasant girl persecuted by society and God for wearing her only prized possession to church – a pair of red shoes. Forced to dance until she dies, only after her feet are chopped off and she repents is she finally allowed to see the glory of God, at which point she dies regardless...a harsh punishment indeed. In our sory we believe that this young, proud girl can learn from her mistakes and free herself from punishment.
Dancer: Sa'Elayssa Saint Joan
"We cast you off, separate & abandon you, praying this same secular power on this side of death & the mutilation of your limbs, to moderate its judgment towards you..." – Judges at Joan of Arc's trial
"I have done nothing except by revelation" – Jeanne d'Arc Joan’s followers adored her as a prophet
and military idol. The English were stricken with fear at her success
and condemned her as a heretic. So firm in her faith that the judges
called her obstinate, Jeanne d'Arc was burned at the stake on May 30,
1431—she was 19 years old. On this carousel is Joan of Arc after
she is burned at the stake. Her initial entrance into the afterlife
is filled with doubt and rage for the life she sacrificed all in the
name of God. In this very last battle she finally forgives Him and is
able to embrace her only true love. God welcomes her and she is lifted
to Heaven to finally attain peace.
Dancer: Djahari ACT II Ringmaster
Ra: Brad Miller
Dawn to Dusk
APEP: A monster living in perpetual darkness. This Egyptian snake god is the chief of the antagonists of the sun god Ra & each night tries to kill the sun god in the underworld
BAST: Bast is one of the "Eyes of Ra", the title of an "avenger" god who is sent out specifically to lay waste to the enemies of Egypt. The Egyptian cat-headed goddess was strictly a solar diety until the arrival of Greek influence on Egyptian society. The Greeks saw her as a lunar goddess associated with love, music, dance & other pleasures (mainly sexual). Having abandoned his carousel the Ringmaster journeys to Egypt and comes upon beautiful Sun Worshipers who discover his sacred mark of Ra and use him to channel their most loved God in the daily battle between good and evil. Dancers: Apep 1, 2, 3: YaHelewa! (Amara, Amanda, Kalila) Apeps Shadows: Katherine, Nicolette Henry, Sayaka Bast 1, 2, 3: Djahari, Sa'Elayssa, Cassandra Puppeteers: Jesse Kingsley, Rob Hummel, Jason Hicks, Steven Franklin Original story concept & design by Djahari & Sa'Elayssa Executive Producer: Djahari Clark Producer: Jeremy Vargas |