This June a group of artists share their own individual perspectives
on what is iconic about Sedona. A new summer
event, Sedona in the Summer, will combine Theater and art
to share the wonder of Sedona in a new way.
Red Earth Theatre Company’s Kate Hawkes will be directing
The Pink Nectar Café, based on the book of the same
title by Jim Bishop. Studio 61 artist Jennifer Epperson and
guest artist Mary Helsaple will be displaying a body of work
called “Sedona Icons.”
The idea for this show came in two parts. As producing
artistic director, Ms. Hawkes tells me how her role in the creation
of this event occurred. “We seem to have developed a
knack for creating original shows in unexpected places (for
example Recycling with a Unicorn at the Sedona Recycles Center
in September last year). In conversation with local author
and long time resident, the inimitable Mr. Bishop, this writer
had to note that his words had seen many forms — newspapers,
books, online columns, and poetry — and queried
whether his words had ever seen the form of a theatrical production
before.
They had not, he confided, and when Ms. Hawkes affirmed
the stories in The Pink Nectar Café would make good one acts,
the wheels began to turn.
“Jim is good friends with Danny Garland at Indian Gardens
Café and we thought it’d be great to do it up there
in the park outdoors away from the heat of the valley,” Ms.
Hawkes tells me. “Danny said yes immediately. I then met
Jennifer, a mutual friend of Jim’s that he had been saying I
should meet, and discovered she had been talking with
Danny about putting some of her new work ‘Sedona Icons’
up there —and so the vision grew. Let’s add a premier art
exhibit to the world premier play!”
Dev Ross, a playwright, actress and director, is working
with Ms. Hawkes to develop an adaptation of the book for
the stage using five of the short essays. “They will be staged
as a full production woven together with the letters of Everett
Ruess (whose story is also referenced in the book),” Ms.
Hawkes says. “Live music (ideally native American flutes
and percussion) will underscore the production. The linking
theme of the plays (again, all from stories by Jim which are
true stories) is that there are more wonders and mysteries
than we can ever know in our land and history … and simply
as human beings in this world, there are occasions when we
cannot know the answers and perhaps just need to let the
stories speak to us and let the mystery be.”
Ms. Hawkes reveals more of what stories will be incorporated
into the play. “The stories include an encounter with the
Navajo Chindi, the dying Verde River, the mystery of a gambling
addiction, the story of the lady who blew the whistle on
the trustees who were selling the artifacts at the Museum of
Northern Arizona and thus saved it, and of course the mysterious
Pink Nectar Cafe itself,” she says. “The character of the
young Everett who vanished as a young man into the wilderness
in Northern Arizona and left behind a body of poetry
and letters home that have been published, is our ethereal
guide through the evening. The plays will be presented in a
very simple and stripped-down style.”
Ms. Epperson, meanwhile, reveals a little about the visual
component of the show. “I’ve spent much of the time exploring
culture — the art culture, the human culture and the
culture of place … Having come from a city of several million
people where much can remain anonymous, a town of
10,000 is easier to explore as a micro culture. What makes it
unique, what makes it wonderful and mysterious? As an artist
I like the challenge of mulling over these questions and
encourage the viewer to do likewise …
“‘Sedona Icons’ resulted from my relationship with Sedona.
I am not a realistic recorder of place, other artists here are so
much better at that than me. I look more at what else makes
this a unique environment, besides the landscape. I began
first by looking at our manmade environment — architecture
in particular. The Sedona Icons that will be featured are structures
built throughout our history as a community. However,
like many Western artists before me, I create places as I imagine
them, not as they actually are. Let’s face it, our built environment
changes in ways we can see in a lifetime, whereas
the red rocks do not.”
“Most people imagine that artists who live in a beautiful natural
environment will paint the landscape,” Ms. Epperson continues.
“Many artists do, and do it very well. However, the environment
influences me in other ways — shapes, color and
light are great influences. The natural building materials and
cowboy architecture, even the film industry has produced
buildings that are quirky and unique. The fact that Sedona
is seen with the new eyes of visitors every day challenged me
to create scenes that seem ‘real’ but are not. I am often saddened
by deterioration of our built environment. We have a
history that is rich but not well known. I simply want to challenge
the viewer to take a good look — see new things.”
Mary Helsaple has collaborated with Ms. Epperson on
community art projects in the past. “We both have a slightly
quirky, warped sense of humor about how serious simple
things get in Sedona,” Ms. Helsaple shares. “We like the subtle
back story involved in the creation of art. How the process
can sometimes be a way of working the whole thing out. Little
images, and in this case, Jim’s Pink Nectar Café spins as a
metaphor for the larger scope of things in life. We all resonate
with that and want to create a unique community art collaboration
around that theme. ‘Sedona Icons’ is our umbrella under
which we can create funny, other times poignant, many
times tragic or deeply personal impressions. We all realized
we roll into every piece of art, play, or prose we create.”
Whenever people ask Ms. Helsaple where she’s from, their
response is usually, “Oh… Sedona!” “I wonder what that
means, and when I ask them, it is always a different, sometimes
bizarre story,” she says. “Others seem to have a ‘vision’
of what Sedona is, based on those who have visited. It sure
seems like someplace everyone wants to go! I see how javelinas
live in distinct groups. There is a lot going on between
them, and how they interact with one another and the prickly
environment. I created an image that illustrates ‘Yes, we have
the same concerns of preparing for our day,’ attitude with Javelina
Hairdo. Sort of a spoof on ‘bad hair day,’ because they
too have stressful days with traffic and finding food, etcetera.
People forget that they live in a ‘prickly’ situation with humans
around. Pun intended!”
Elaborating on the ideology of the show, Ms. Helsaple says,
“Some people believe icons are static. We believe they are illusions
… constantly evolving and shifting. Being an artist
that observes nature and how it connects to humans is my
creative focus. I see Sedona’s community of plants, birds and
animals as a huge part of the Sedona experience. Jennifer
sees the style, the architecture, the past and present people
who shape Sedona as icons. But we also have lots of plant
and animal icons. Everyone who comes to Arizona wants to
see a roadrunner or a javelina; they also expect to see cactus,
a pink jeep, the chapel and experience a vortex.”
Sedona in the Summer’s performances of The Pink Nectar
Café will be performed on Friday, June 26 & Saturday, June
27 at 7:30PM and Sunday, June 28 at 4PM at Indian Gardens
Park, across the street from Indian Gardens Market. The art of
“Sedona’s Icons,” will be on display through July 4.
“This is a wonderful opportunity to bring together performing
and visual artists to create and share art in a historical venue,”
Ms. Hawkes says of the upcoming event. “I believe that
with a multi-generational cast, musicians and two unique artists
producing something never before seen in an old haunt it
will inspire the community to play and work together to both
honor and explore their historical legacy. If we can weave
stronger ties between the arts communities and invite audiences
to experience us all together, perhaps then we become
a stronger, more connected community in all ways.”
http://RedEarthTheatre.org http://facebook.com/thestudio61 http://helsaple.com
Clair Anna Rose is a rogue for the rouge.
[email protected]
