Performing in a quarry

Some quarries seem to be made for theatrical performances, including stages and places for audience. Although it is an open air venue the sound and light are mysterious as you are at least 10m below the surface.
We did several informal try outs with more than satisfying results, but to organize a formal public event in a quarry is not easy because of safety and logistics.

Once we initiated and co-produced a very ambitious and successful theatre production: the Divina Commedia 2.0. See below for an impression and divina commedia detailsthis page for more details.

Moonlight is doing strange things in the quarry:

The artist’s couple Dan and Trish Scott realized a series of projects, assuming that the abandoned marble quarries were no the result of recent industrial activities, by are the remains of temples of an ancient civilization. They collected artefacts that they feel support their hypothesis, reconstructed instruments, wrote a scientific essay under the pseudonym of Dr Rosa Ramm, and gave at the end of their residency a press conference to present their findings.

A wonderful video showing the archeological excavations is on http://www.trishscott.org/marmaros.html

Dan Scott studied the acoustics of the quarries and concluded that this civilization must have used marble xylophones for communication and leisure. He reconstructed one. See this video.

At the end of their residency Dan and Trish Scott gave a press conference of their findings in Évora.

Foundation OBRAS promised the artists to make a book in small edition, in which their project is summarized. The promise still stands but realization is delayed for financial reasons.   

Just to get the experience Olivia Bliss (Scotland) did sing and played with her shadow.

Melina Peña (Mexico) and Nuno Veiga (Portugal) recorded on the foot of a marble waste pile a performance with butoh dance elements.  A video still is below.  

Jee Won Kim (South Korea) made a choreography for a dance and danced that piece herself in a quarry, partly accompanied by by António Pliz on violin. 

Students of Margo Kalse (Holland) did sing to experience the unique acoustics, as did the students of António Carrilho (Portugal) in his Master class recorder.