Artbound Wins L.A. Area Emmy for "Invisible Cities" Documentary
On Saturday July 26, Artbound was awarded an L.A.-Area Emmy Award for Entertainment Programming for the documentary Invisible Cities: An Opera for Headphones, a one-hour special episode tracing the creation and performance of the avant-garde opera "Invisible Cities."
Created by Los Angeles experimental opera company The Industry, in partnership with L.A. Dance Project, the "Invisible Cities" opera portrayed the meeting between emperor Kublai Khan at the end of his life with the explorer Marco Polo, as told in Italo Calvino's fantastical book. Staged at iconic Union Station and utilizing wireless technology provided by Sennheiser, the innovative and interactive opera offered audience members headphones to hear the work amid the hustle and bustle of the train station's everyday life. "Invisible Cities" was composed and adapted by Christopher Cerrone, directed by The Industry's founder and artistic director Yuval Sharon, with choreography by Danielle Agami.
Artbound director Bruce Dickson was also nominated for his work on Gary Baseman And Me: Critique, Correspondence And Collaboration In The Art World.
In total, KCETLink won in five categories at 66th Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards, which took place at The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in North Hollywood, and received nine nominations, including six for its weekly local news magazine,SoCal Connected and one for the 54th Annual L.A. County Holiday Celebration, produced by KCET in partnership with the L.A. County Arts Commission and CDK Productions.
Best Entertainment Programming: Invisible Cities: An Opera for Headphones
Matthew Crotty, Producer
Joris Debeij, Producer
Juan Devis, Executive Producer
Drew Tewksbury, Co-Producer
Read more about Artbound's coverage of the Invisible Cities Opera:
Invisible Cities: The Dematerialization of the Opera
Artistic director Yuval Sharon details his inspiration for "Invisible Cities," and the endless possibilities opened up by the use of headphones. The presence of wireless technology in the experimental work creates a new operatic experience -- and maybe even expands the definition of opera.
Invisible Cities: The Science of a Silent Opera
Sound designer Martin Gimenez explains the challenges of getting wireless technology to deliver the extraordinary sonic experience that befits the unconventional opera.
Invisible Cities: Composing an Opera for Headphones
In composing the music for "Invisible Cities," Christopher Cerrone created many levels of orchestral detail that would evoke the elaborate and fantastical places that Calvino imagines.
Invisible Cities: The Choreography of Union Station
Dancers in "Invisible Cities" execute an array of moves in Union Station that range from rigorous solos to improvisational and hip-hop-like explosions, to glacially slow stances.
Finding Space in the Inferno: Observations on Calvino's 'Invisible Cities'
Union Station is an ideal place to realize the opera "Invisible Cities," an adaptation of Italo Calvino's book about relationships between built environments and social and economic life.
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