Rogue Artists Ensemble's HYPERBOLE: origins premieres at [Inside] the Ford

It's the birth of the universe - live on stage! Los Angeles' award-winning art collective Rogue Artists Ensemble presents the world premiere of HYPEBOLE: origins at [Inside] the Ford beginning October 30.

SEE the amazing Origin Machine and experience the fantastic Origin-torium! Travel on a journey to the heart of humanity, inspired by some of mankind's most powerful stories. Witness a performance drawing from myth, science, humanity, and faith, set to an eclectic soundtrack from around the world, including contributions from Animal Collective, Josiah Wolf, The Very Best, Deerhoof, Oh No Ono, Max Tundra, The Ditty Bops and many more. HYPERBOLE: origins is an original, adventurous celebration of myth, music, movement, mania and the connection between all of us. Using masks, puppets and cutting-edge technology, The Rogues have created a truly exhilarating and Hyper-theatrical experience about the act of creation itself.

Celebrating the origin of all things, HYPERBOLE: origins is inspired by questions both physical (Where did our audience come from? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? How are earthquakes caused?) and esoteric (How was the first music invented? How did Native Alaskans explain the creation of man?).

"The feel of the show is largely inspired by the 1962 Seattle World's Fair and a retro-future aesthetic," explains director Sean T. Cawelti. "We want audience members to feel as though they're on a theme park ride. One of the actors wears a mask in which the eyes are actually speakers that are wirelessly controlled. He can use a remote to control the sounds that emanate from the mask, creating a language of his own. It's eerie and quite beautiful. Also, much of the evening will be interactive, so the show will never be exactly the same twice in a row. For example, audience members will contribute ideas and content that will actually end up in the performance, making it personal in ways that are unexpected."

"But," Cawelti emphasizes, "the real heart of the project is about the storytelling and about the importance of passing along stories from one generation to the next. It's about the cycle of life and death, the idea that when one thing ends, something else begins. As our world moves more quickly, we have to remember the importance of valuing where we've been."

Rogue Artists Ensemble differs from other theater companies in that it's run by a collective of multi-disciplinary artists and designers rather than by actors, writers or directors. By combining ancient storytelling techniques (music, dance, masks, puppetry) with modern technology (digital media, special effects and theatrical illusions), the Rogues cultivate a unique style of live performance unlike any other. They define the combined use of these and other underrepresented art forms as Hyper-theater.

Last season, Rogue Artist Ensemble worked with playwright Kitty Felde to Hyper-theatrically adapt three short stories by Nikolai Gogol. Gogol Project was a Critic's Choice in the Los Angeles Times, winning four Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards for adaptation and design and an LA Weekly Award for design. With their earlier production of The Tragical Comedy of Mr. Punch, the Rogues delivered on their promise to "make audience members feel as though they had opened up the graphic novel and wound up trapped deep inside," earning rave reviews and garnering three Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards; that production was also given an entire chapter in the book "Prince of Stories: The Many Worlds of Neil Gaiman." Other Rogue Artist Ensemble productions include The Victorian Hotel by Angus Oblong, The Story of Frog Belly Rat Bone, adapted from the book by Timothy Basil, and four prior HYPERBOLE productions including HYPERBOLE: epiphany and HYPERBOLE: changes.

HYPERBOLE: origins was written and developed by the Rogue Artists Ensemble, with special contributions by Sean T. Cawelti, Miles Taber, and Nina Silver, and stars Kris Bicknell, Julia Garcia Combs, Brian Kuwabara, Alex Levin, Shannon MacMillan, Diona Reasonover and Thu Tran, with Christina Aimerito and Gedaly Guberek understudying. Scenic Design is by Logan Wince; Lighting Design is by Ian Garrett; Costume Design is by Kerry Hennessy; Puppet Design is by Caitlin Lainoff; Sound Design and Music Supervision are by John Nobori; Choreography is by Nate Hodges; Video Design is by Dave Mickey; Mask Design is by Katie Polebaum; and Properties Design is by Sarah Krainin. Original music is being composed by Ego Plum, Ben Phelps and John Nobori.

[Inside] the Ford is located in the Ford Theatres complex at 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood, CA 90068, just off the 101 Hollywood Freeway across from the Hollywood Bowl and south of Universal Studios. On-site, non-stacked parking is free. For reservations and information, call the Ford Theatres Box Office at 323.461.3673 (323.GO1.FORD) or go to www.FordTheatres.org.