Chicago-based and internationally renowned multimedia art collective Manual Cinema conducted a hands-on, participatory workshop exploring the company’s approach to storytelling and live cinema techniques on Thursday, Oct. 10. The workshop included an overview of the company’s creative process; a staged sequence demonstrating the company’s AV/puppetry techniques and cinematic language; and an opportunity for participants to use the company’s equipment to devise short vignettes of their own. Participants included an array of Shenandoah Conservatory theatre students in acting, musical theatre and theatre design and production programs, as well as community members involved in sculpture, performance art, photography, filmmaking, animation and more.
“This was such a valuable learning experience,” said one participant. “I feel that we, as students, get so caught up in doing on-stage, ‘traditional’ theatre, that we forget that there are other forms of performance out there. Manuel Cinema showed us how they turned a very simple concept …into something that is complex and beautiful to watch.”
The workshop followed Manual Cinema’s performance of “Frankenstein,” a production which stitches together the classic tale of “Frankenstein” and Mary Shelley’s own life to create an unexpected story about the beauty — and horror — of creation. Combining live theatre and music with handmade shadow puppetry, cinematic techniques and original musical compositions, Manual Cinema creates immersive visual stories for stage and screen. Visit www.manualcinema.com to learn more.
