Ikaros
“a meditation on humankind’s eternal desire to take wing.”
– San Diego Union-Tribune
“Exquisite visual imagery, every-gesture-counts dance, and an evocative recorded sound score… performed with impeccable clarity… Even pedestrian moves convey a sophisticated choreographic intelligence.”
— Janice Sternberg, San Diego Story
Justin Lynch; Photo courtesy by Jim Carmody
About Ikaros
Written, directed, and choreographed by Tom Pearson
La Jolla Playhouse’s Without Walls (WOW) Festival, San Diego, CA (2019)
Commissioned by La Jolla Playhouse for the 2019 Without Walls Festival, Ikaros is an experiential collection of dreams, myth, film, poetry, dance, and performance—an audience-centered walking tour through a desert garden path. As a site-specific work created for Liberty Station, a former naval base, performances wind around the park and waterways across from an active tarmac, with airplanes arriving and departing overhead from the San Diego airport. Images of Icarus, Lindbergh, and Earhart mix with the fragrances of rosemary and creosote, while the flight patterns and roar of the engines above fold into one another to become a rite of passage that follows a cartography of flight, failure, recovery.
“There’s a depth of precision to Third Rail’s choreography that few others dare match, and that’s on display here in abundance.”
— Noah Nelson, No Proscenium
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![A man with a beard wearing a beige jacket stands with arms extended in a dark environment, illuminated only by a light source highlighting his face and upper body.]()
Justin Lynch
Photo by Jim Carmody
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![A man with shiny wings standing outdoors at night illuminated by a bright purple light.]()
Andrew Broaddus
Photo by Black Axe Media
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![Close-up of a woman wearing dark sunglasses and a headset, with a serious expression, accompanied by a man wearing pink headphones and a jacket in the background.]()
Mary Madsen
Photo by Black Axe Media
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![Three individuals operating camera and audio equipment at night, with trees and streetlights in the background.]()
Andrew Broaddus, Justin Lynch, Mary Madsen
Photo by Jim Carmody
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![A man standing outdoors at night, holding a cluster of eagle feathers, looking up at the dark sky near a pine tree.]()
Justin Lynch
Photo by Jim Carmody
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![Two people lie on the ground outdoors at night under purple lighting, appearing unconscious or injured near a piece of furniture.]()
Mary Madsen, Justin Lynch
Photo by Jamie Lytle
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![A man kneeling on the ground at night, arranging white sticks or chalk lines on the dirt, with a small wooden puppet in front of him, illuminated by purple and yellow lighting.]()
Justin Lynch
Photo by Jamie Lytle
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![A young man with a serious expression is walking out of the water at night, wearing a dark leather jacket and pants, with makeshift angel wings attached to his back, illuminated against a dark background with city lights reflecting on the water.]()
Andrew Broaddus
Photo by Jim Carmody
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![A woman crouching on the ground at night with a large bright flashlight behind her illuminating the scene.]()
Mary Madsen
Photo by Jamie Lytle
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![A person standing on a rocky terrain at night holding a large, white flag or sail, illuminated by purple lights in the background.]()
Justin Lynch
Photo by Black Axe Media
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![Three individuals in outdoor nighttime setting; one is lying on the ground, another is grabbing their arm, and the third is kicking at the person on the ground, with city lights in the background.]()
Mary Madsen, Andrew Broaddus, Justin Lynch
Photo by Jim Carmody
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![Night scene with three humans on a beach, some with angel or demon-like wings, illuminated by purple and white lights, with a tent and trees in the background.]()
Justin Lynch, Andrew Broaddus, Mary Madsen
Photo by Black Axe Media
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![A man and a woman stand back-to-back in darkness, illuminated by purple light, with serious expressions.]()
Mary Madsen, Andrew Broaddus
Photo by Black Axe Media
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![A woman with makeup holding a puppet or doll that appears to be flying or floating in the air against a dark night background, with some trees or bushes illuminated on the right side.]()
Mary Madsen
Photo by Black Axe Media
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![A person wearing sunglasses and a headset is singing into a stand-up electrical fan.]()
Andrew Broaddus
Photo by Black Axe Media
Credits
La Jolla Playhouse’s Without Walls (WOW) Festival
presents Ikaros by Tom Pearson
World Premiere, a La Jolla Playhouse Commission
CREATIVE TEAM
Written, Directed, and Choreographed by Tom Pearson
Contributing Directors: Zach Morris and Jennine Willett
Created in Collaboration with the Performers:
Andrew Broaddus, Justin Lynch, Mary Madsen
Additional Text: Zach Morris
Original Music and Sound Design: Sean Hagerty
Collaborative Musician: Isaiah Singer
Voice-overs: Andrew Broaddus, Justin Lynch, Mary Madsen
Vocalist: Andrew Broaddus
Lighting Design: Zach Morris, with Tom Pearson
Costume Design: Tom Pearson, with Jennine Willett
Wing Design: Bennett C. Taylor
Dramaturgy: David Mancini
PRODUCTION STAFF
Production Manager: Brittany Crowell
Production Stage Manager: Taylor Hollister
Assistant Stage Manager: David Mancini
Lighting Consultant: Lutin Tanner
Stitcher & Costume Consultant: Anna-Alisa Belous
Production Assistants: Noah Fusco, Shannon Humiston, Bennett C. Taylor
PROJECT SUPPORT
COMMISSION & FUNDING
Ikaros was commissioned and presented by La Jolla Playhouse as part of the 2019 Without Walls Festival. Ikaros received development support from the Center for the Arts, Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut; from the Bogliasco Foundation in Liguria, Italy with a Residency Fellowship in Theatre; and through the Sketch Model program at Olin College of Engineering where Tom Pearson was the 2019-2020 Artist in Reference; through a major individual contribution from Kyle Fisher; and from the Third Rail Projects Producers Circle, which is supported by individual donors.
Special thanks to David Margolin Lawson, who engineered the voice-over sessions at Pace University.
lkaros was also supported by New Music USA: https://www.newmusicusa.org/projects/ikaros
SPECIAL THANKS:
Renata Zhigulina, Cullan M. Riley, Fiona Coffey, Rani Arbo, Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés, J.T. Garrett, Sara Hendren
REPRESENTATION
Paradigm Talent Agency, Jack Tantleff and Allison Schwartz
PRODUCTION LEGAL COUNSEL
Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, P.C., Mark A. Merriman, Esq. and Helen Reeves, Esq.
ACCOUNTANT
Egan Tax & Books Ltd, Becky Egan, CPA
Press Coverage
“… inspires conversation and contemplation… I couldn't stop thinking about it after I saw it.”
— E.H. Reiter, BroadwayWorld
All Press Coverage
SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE | Review | October 19, 2019
“Highlights of the Without Walls Festival” by Pam Kragen
“a meditation on humankind’s eternal desire to take wing.” – San Diego Union-Tribune
BROADWAYWORLD (San Diego) | Review | October 19, 2019 |
“BWW Review: WITHOUT WALLS FESTIVAL at La Jolla Playhouse - PDA, TALL TALE OF THE HIGH SEAS, INCLUSION, & IKAROS” by E.H. Reiter
“… inspires conversation and contemplation… I couldn't stop thinking about it after I saw it.”
SAN DIEGO STORY | Review | October 21, 2019
“The Point Loma Pause as Art: Ikaros at the WOW Festival” by Janice Sternberg
“… Exquisite visual imagery, every-gesture-counts dance, and an evocative recorded sound score… performed with impeccable clarity… Even pedestrian moves convey a sophisticated choreographic intelligence.”
NO PROSCENIUM | Review | October 23, 2019
“We Don’t Need Walls Where We’re Going: 2019 Without Walls Festival Diary: San Diego’s Liberty Station became ground zero for groundbreaking work” by Noah Nelson
“There’s a depth of precision to Third Rail’s choreography that few others dare match, and that’s on display here in abundance.”
OLIN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING | Feature | October 22, 2019
“Olin’s Second Creative in Reference Takes Flight with Help from Olin Students”, Special to Olin
KPBS SAN DIEGO | Interview | October 16, 2019
Interview with Tom Pearson by KPBS Public Media
La Jolla Playhouse’s 2019 Without WallS (WOW) Festival Trailer