AN
OCEAN RUNS THROUGH US
Visions
of the Underwater World as seen through the eyes of legendary photographer Bob
Halstead, in conjunction with musical soundscapes by Solo Violinist Kirtley
Leigh in live performance.
Sedona has always been a place of mystery
and majesty. Many millions of years ago, this cragged, startling landscape was
once itself an ocean.
What better part of the world, therefore,
to feature a spectacular show, interlacing vibrant images with improvised
music…..all about the wonders that lie beneath our oceans.
Eric Vaughan Holowacz, Executive Director
of the Sedona Arts Center, had a vision to invite artists from all over the
world to meet here in Sedona, for a summer of collaboration and creative
interaction, set admist this spiritual desert backdrop. The Sedona Summer
Colony was thus born, and, earlier this week, his vision became reality as
artists began to arrive- over 100 Artists-in-Residence over a broad spectrum of
disciplines.
One project to emerge from this creative
vision is this feature show,
“An Ocean Runs Through Us.”
Underwater Photographer Bob Halstead has
spent a lifetime diving and taking pictures of the underwater kingdom he fell
in love with. His expertise centred on
the South Pacific, the iconic waters of the Great Barrier Reef and uncharted
seascapes of Papua New Guinea in particular. In 2008 he was inducted into the
International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame.
Bob’s images, shot in shallow tropical
seas, could very well represent the same landscapes of an underwater Sedona
from 300 million years ago.
Solo Violinist Kirtley Leigh has performed
on stages all around the world. Her audiences have included Prime Ministers and
Royalty, and she has worked with stars from Pavarotti to John Denver. Having
toured and worked in over 30 countries, her career eventually took her to
Australia where she created her own Chamber Music Series- Paradise Concerts.
Having served as both Artistic Director and Violinist with Paradise Concerts
for the past 13 years, Kirtley is poised to relocate back to her native USA.
She and Bob became engaged last year.
Together, as a couple, Bob and Kirtley were
invited by Eric to come to the Sedona Summer Colony and create. How exciting,
then, when they met Producer Rob Chidester (over welcome Margaritas under a
full moon)! Of course creative sparks of energy ignited immediately, and this
project was born.
Originally from Baton Rouge, Rob Chidester
grew up across the lake from the LSU Campus. In high school he was introduced to
theater. This exposure set him on
course in the production world from that point forward. He
moved to Nashville, where he ran a
scenic design shop working in the film and video production world as a
producer, designer, prop master, set dresser,
and all around “handle-it-guy” on music videos, training films, and
major motion pictures with credits on two Academy Award winning movies,
"Walk the Line" and "The Help". The advent of film
production in Louisiana brought Rob back to Baton Rouge in 2011 to establish a
scenic shop and prop studio there.
Having been inspired by nature towering
above us in Sedona, as well as descending fathoms below us in our Ocean’s
depths, these three artists have started to create this show, making magic
happen in the desert.
Please join the Mary Fisher Theatre in
welcoming Bob, Kirtley and Rob to the stage this Sunday afternoon at 1:00 pm
for a “first glance” of the project.
In this creative process, this is a work in
progress. We welcome audience interaction, feedback, and discussion.
After all, an Ocean Runs through Us, the
flow of audience and performer together gives us all a sense of creative joy.
Wonders abound here in Sedona, indeed!