It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s…a mouse on a rocketship?
Things are looking bright for Symphony Space’s celebrated family series, Just Kidding, and we’re excited to welcome Lightwire Theater back, and to introduce all of you to Marvin. Who’s Marvin? Here’s a squeak peek:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OZcPG_cueY
Cute little guy, right?
As Stephen says in the video, Lightwire Theater is coming to Symphony Space on March 19 with a brand new project called Moon Mouse: A Space Odyssey. It’s an age-old tale: Marvin wants to be cool. The in-crowd calls him a loser. So what does Marvin do? Blasts off in his homemade rocket and lands on the moon. There, Marvin finds strange creatures, infinite danger, and awesome beauty during his search for acceptance.
The show is performed completely in the dark, but fear not! Lightwire Theater uses electroluminescent wire to create glow-in-the-dark sets, costumes and masks.
Come and meet Marvin on the 19th! It’s the last Just Kidding show of the season before we blast off into spring.
(Any and all puns above are a direct side effect of today’s sunny spring teaser here in New York City…)
Q&A:
A conversation about “Moon Mouse: A Space Odyssey,” with Lightwire Theater creator and artistic director Ian Carney
Symphony Space: Your new production “Moon Mouse: A Space Odyssey” seems like a story of adventure and fun, but it also explores the idea that it’s okay to be different. How did you decide to bring that theme forward?
Ian: Yes, the show has many positive messages for children, and it deals with the issue of bullying. I would say that it came from personal experience. As a kid I was made fun of for taking ballet class. I understood what it felt like to be an outsider and not part of the group. I actually quit dance because of peer pressure when I was 14 and got involved in sports. Years later in college I went back to dance — and was very fortunate to go on to have a long and successful career as a ballet dancer. We hope that Marvin will encourage everyone to embrace being different and not be afraid to walk to the beat of their own drum.
SS: What inspired you to have Marvin travel through space?
Ian: From a narrative perspective the widely known fable “The Moon Is Made of Cheese” seemed the perfect fit with our leading character who happened to be a mouse. Marvin, who is seen as a geek by the other mice in school, uses his “geeky intelligence” to build a rocket to go to the moon to bring back cheese. He hopes that this will make him “popular.”
From a visual perspective the idea of flying through space seemed a natural for our medium. We also liked the idea of creating our version of space creatures.
SS: Are there any scientific elements or educational aspects to the show?
Ian: There is a ton of engineering that has to go into a costume before it ever gets a chance to glow. All the joints, connections and articulations need to be able to last for at least 10 years of performing. Once this is achieved, we can line the structure with electroluminescent wire (or El-wire for short).The wire itself has a phosphorous coating over a copper core and its color comes from a PVC exterior coating. Each character has their own power supply to light up this wire and it all runs on AA batteries … all this before one step can be choreographed … phew!
SS: What were the special creative joys and challenges in constructing the characters and sets for “Moon Mouse?”
Ian: There is always a particular joy when sculpting a new character for the first time and then watching it come to life. The biggest challenge was creating the environment of space flight.
SS: How have audiences reacted to the show so far?
Ian: They seem to love it.
SS: You’ve brought amazing, blockbuster performances to the Just Kidding stage at Symphony Space in the past (“Dino-Light” and “Ugly Duckling/Tortoise & the Hare”). What do you most look forward to in coming back to Symphony Space and NYC?
Ian: We are extremely excited to return to Symphony Space — the audiences are second to none!!!
Get tickets! See the new productions of Lightwire Theater’s “Moon Mouse: A Space Odyssey” at Just Kidding — Symphony Space, at 11 am or 2 pm on Saturday, March 19th! For details, go to www.symphonyspace.org/justkidding. Ticket holders will also enjoy fun activities from family-friendly sponsors at Social Space at Just Kidding.
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