Power Failure

Artist Bios (as of 1992)

PAUL DRESHER (Artistic Director/Composer)

Dresher performs with live tape processing system and electronics and composes for chamber, orchestra and opera/musical theater ensembles. Recent commissions have included works for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Kronos Quartet, the San Francisco Symphony, a Nonesuch Commission Award from the American Music Center and the Olympic Arts Festival. He has worked with director Robert Woodruff on two productions at the La Jolla Playhouse and has twice collaborated with the Margaret Jenkins Dance Company and the ODC-San Francisco. Since 1979 he has performed throughout the U.S. and Europe, including performances at the Munich State Opera, Festival d'Automne in Paris, San Francisco Symphony, Brooklyn Academy of Music's Next Wave Festival, London International Festival of Theatre and the New York Philharmonic. He formed the Ensemble in 1984 and has been the Artistic Director and Composer for WAS ARE WILL BE, SLOW FIRE, and POWER FAILURE. Recordings of his works have been released on the Lovely Music and New Albion labels.

RINDE ECKERT (Writer/Performer)

Eckert is a writer, singer, director and actor whose music theater pieces have been performed throughout the United States and abroad. With composer Paul Dresher, he created SLOW FIRE, a musical monodrama for which he wrote text and developed the character. Rinde and Paul recently received an Isadora Duncan award for their score of SHELF LIFE, a collaborative work with the Margaret Jenkins Dance Company. NOT FOR REAL, a solo piece he created and directed with Leonard Pitt, was the recipient of two Bay Area Critics' Circle Awards. Rinde's sound and music scores have been used by Contraband, The Dance Brigade, Caravan the Margaret Jenkins Dance Company and most recently in Deborah Slater's GRACE FLOATS. His solo radio musical SHOOT THE MOVING THINGS can be heard on the New American Radio series of National Public Radio. A new solo piece, DRY LAND DIVINE, a new solo work, and SHOREBIRDS ATLANTIC, a duet with Margaret Jenkins, were recently presented at Dance Theater Workshop in New York. SHOREBIRDS ATLANTIC will be featured this year on "Alive From Off Center" on PBS.

TOM O'HORGAN (Director, POWER FAILURE)

O'Horgan is a charter member of La Mama E.T.C., where he co-founded, with Ellen Stewart, the original La Mama Troupe. At La Mama, he directed THE TEMPEST, ARTURO UI, and Fernanco Arrabal's THE ARCHITECT AND THE EMPEROR OF ASSYRIA. All three plays contained original music composed and arranged by Mr. O'Horgan. He also directed the landmark Broadway hits HAIR, LENNY, and JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR. For opera, he directed Berlioz' LES TROYENS for the Vienna State Opera, and LILY by Leon Kirchner at the New York State Opera. His film credits include FUTZ with La Mama Troupe, and RHINOCEROS with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder. He has restaged Leonard Bernstein's MASS at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, and at Carnegie Hall, Stravinsky's SOLDIER'S TALE. MOWGLI, which he wrote and directed, played off Broadway after its world premiere at the American Music Theater Festival in 1985. He has just completed THE BALLAD OF CARL DREYER for Danmarks (Danish) Radio and has written the libretto, composed the score, and is the director of two contemporary operas under the title of P'OPRA - SENATOR JOE and NIMROD AND THE TOWER OF BABEL.

RICHARD E. T. WHITE (Creative Development/Workshop Director, POWER FAILURE)

White most recently directed Eric Overmyer's IN PERPETUITY THROUGHOUT THE UNIVERSE at Seattle's Empty Space Theatre. During his tenure as Artistic Director of Chicago's Wisdom Bridge Theater he directed, among others, Philip Gotanda's YANKEE DAWG YOU DIE and the world premiere of the musical TEN NOVEMBER by Steven Dietz and Eric Peltoniemi. His production of HARD TIMES, based on Charles Dickens' novel, originally produced at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, was selected for inclusion in the 1986 American Theatre Exchange festival of American regional theatre in New York. He has directed at the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, the Oregon Shakespearean Festival, the Berkeley Repertory Theater and the Berkeley Shakespeare Festival. His work has earned seven Bay Area Theatre Critic's Awards and four Drama-Logue Awards for Outstanding Direction for productions including COMEDIANS, MACBETH, OTHERWISE ENGAGED, HENRY IV PART ONE and MARY BARNES.

MICHAEL OLICH (Set and Costume Designer, POWER FAILURE)

Olich has collaborated on scenery and costume designs for the theatre and opera along the west coast and throughout the midwest. A freelance designer residing in Seattle, he currently has projects in development with the Seattle Repertory Theatre, the Alliance Theatre of Atlanta, Seattle's A Contemporary Theatre and Intiman Theatre, and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival with whom a ten year association has earned him three Los Angeles Dramalogue Awards. For several years, Mr. Olich was a resident designer at both the American Conservatory Theatre of San Francisco and Houston's Alley Theatre, where he eventually served as Director of Design. Other projects include assignments with the Alaska Rep, the Berkeley Repertory Theater, Seattle's Empty Space, the Milwaukee Rep, the Pacific Conservatory of Performing Arts, and Chicago's Wisdom Bridge Theatre. Last fall, Olich's costume design for LA TRAVIATA opened the Seattle Opera's 25th season, and he returns this year with new designs for THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO.

LARRY NEFF (Lighting Designer)

Recipient of two Bay Area Theatre Critic's Awards, Neff has designed lighting for many Bay Area avant garde companies including the Paul Dresher Ensemble's PIONEERS, POWER FAILURE, SLOW FIRE and WAS ARE/WILL BE, the George Coates Performance Works productions of RIGHT MIND, RARE AREA and ACTUAL SHO, and the Kronos Quartet's productions of BLACK ANGELS, SALOME DANCES FOR PEACE, DIFFERENT TRAINS, and LIVE VIDEO. Neff's work has recently been featured in Lighting Dimensions magazine and he is currently working on a dance piece called SECRET HOUSE with ODC- San Francisco.

JAY CLOIDT (Sound Designer/Audio Engineer)

JAY CLOIDT is a composer, performer and audio engineer whose music has been performed at the Venice Biennale, New Music America, and Lincoln Center. He has also worked as sound designer and engineer for many Bay Area companies, including the Margaret Jenkins Dance Company and the Kronos Quartet. Cloidt created the sound design for the Robert Woodruff productions of THE TEMPEST and FIGARO GETS A DIVORCE at the La Jolla Playhouse in 1986 and 1987. His work on the Paul Dresher Ensemble's SLOW FIRE won a Bay Area Critics Circle Award, and he received an Isadora Duncan Award in 1989 with Rinde Eckert for the sound design of Eckert's DRY LAND DIVINE. In 1989 he also completed two compositions for dance: LOVE IT TO DEATH for the Gary Palmer Dance Company, and LIGHT FALL, for the Margaret Jenkins Dance Company. Current projects include KOLE KAT KRUSH, for amplified string quartet and tape, for the Kronos Quartet; and SECRET HOUSE, which he is co-composing with Paul Dresher for the ODC-San Francisco.

JOHN DUYKERS (Tenor)

Mr. Duykers has appeared with major opera companies throughout North America and Europe. His most recent performances include the role of Mao Ze Dong in the widely acclaimed NIXON IN CHINA by John Adams, the Examiner in Michael Nyman's THE MAN WHO MISTOOK HIS WIFE FOR A HAT produced by the American Music Theater Festival at Alice Tully Hall in New York Spain and Tannhaeuser in a production by the same name in the Lyric Opera of Chicago's production conceived and directed by Peter Sellars, and as the Baron in Charles Wuorinen's opera THE W OF BABYLON. In addition to his performances in opera, Mr. Duykers is renowned for his work with new and experimental music theater projects, having been a co-founder of George Coates Performance Works and principal collaborator on five original productions with that company. He received The Los Angeles Times' Becknesser Award in 1983 for his performance of Hans Werner Henze's EL CIMARRON. In June 1989, Mr. Duykers created the role of Krillin the in the world premiere of Anthony Davis' UNDER THE DOUBLE MOON with the Opera Theater of St. Louis.

STEPHANIE FRIEDMAN (Mezzo Soprano)

Ms. Friedman has sung in numerous operas including MADAME BUTTERFLY, Bellini's I CAPULETI E I MONTECCHI, Handel's SEMELE and GIULIO CESARE, Rossini's CENERONTOLA, and the premiere of Roger Session's contata WHEN LILACS LAST IN THE DOORYARD BLOOM'D. Most recently she sang with the Opera Company of Philadelphia and in John Adams' NIXON IN CHINA which appeared in seven venues in the US and Europe. The San Francisco Examiner termed her one of the Arts Treasures of 1985. She has performed works of Boulez, Crumb, David del Tredici, Bartok, Hindemith, Britten, and Stravinsky in the United States and Europe.

THOMASA ECKERT (Soprano)

Thomasa Eckert, singer/pianist, has concertized in the United States, Canada, and Europe, recording with the National Radios of Belgium, Holland and Spain. She played "Diva" in SEEHEAR, a production of George Coates Performance Works, which was part of the 1985 American Music Theater Festival in Philadelphia. She has recorded with Leon Lishner, Paul Dresher, Janice Giteck and John Cage. She is a member of the New Performance Group, and performs with other new music ensembles, as well, notably the Vancouver New Music Society, Marzhena, U.W. Contemporary Group, Washington Composer's Forum, and the Seattle Symphony New Music Series. Eckert has soloed with Steve Reich and the University of Iowa's Center for New Music. She recently created "Jane Smith, Jane Smith" with Diane Schenker which was commissioned by the Northwest New Yorks Festival and sponsored by On The Boards in Seattle.

MIGUEL FRASCONI (Keyboard)

Frasconi has been active as a composer and performer of new music for fifteen years. He has composed extensively for film and modern dance, and his concert music has been heard throughout Europe and North America. He has worked and performed with John Cage, Brian Eno, Jon Hassell, Trishi Sankaran, and James Tenny. While living in Toronto he founded The Glass Orchestra, the internationally acclaimed new music ensemble featuring all glass instruments. He now lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area.

GENE REFFKIN (Percussion)

Reffkin received a B.A. in Music in 1968 from New York University, where he was principal percussionist with the NYU Orchestra. Since moving to the San Francisco area in 1969, he has played both jazz and rock and has been a member of various contemporary music ensembles. He has been performing with Paul Dresher since 1972, and in 1984 was the percussionist in the George Coates Performance Works production, SEEHEAR.

NED ROTHENBERG (Woodwinds)

Rothenberg has performed over 200 concerts throughout Europe, Japan, and the U.S. of his original music for solo saxophone and bass clarinet. These include appearances at New Music America ('83,'85,''87), The Public Theater, Centre Pompidou, Vancouver Jazz Festival, Studio 200 in Tokyo and the Stedlijk Museum in Amsterdam. He is a founding member of two cooperative ensembles: NEW WINDS with Robert Dick and J.D. Parran and SEMANTICS with Samm Bennett and Elliott Sharp. He has three solo albums on Lumina Records and has also recorded for the SST, Review, Rift, and Sound Aspects Labels. Rothenberg is currently working on a collaborative recording project with Paul Dresher, which will premiere at BAM as part of New Music America '89.

MELISSA WEAVER (Production Director)

Ms. Weaver directed John Duykers in Henze's EL CIMARRON which received the L.A. Times Becknesser Award (1983) for best contemporary performance; Puccini's TOSCA with the Las Vegas Symphony; and most recently directed Rinde Eckert's solo performance, DRY LAND DIVINE, which premiered at Cal Performances and was presented at DTW in New York. She has stage managed numerous productions for Houston Music Theater, Tucson Opera Theater, San Diego's Old Globe Theater, BAM, and theaters in Europe. Prior to joining the Paul Dresher Ensemble as Production Manager for SLOW FIRE in 1987, Ms. Weaver collaborated on George Coates Performance Works' THE WAY OF HOW, ARE/ARE, SEEHEAR and RARE AREA.

SYNAPSE PRODUCTIONS (Multi Image Projection Design)

Synapse is an artistic partnership between Will Cloughley and Sondra Slade, both long time professional photographers and award winning multi image designers. For years they have been producing multi images for a roster of commercial clients such as Levi Straus and fine arts entertainment shows that have appeared all over the San Francisco Bay Area. In 1988 they premiered two peices at the Multi-Image Showcase at Theater Artaud to critical acclaim.

ROBIN KIRCK (Producer)

Ms. Kirck has been producing contemporary music and music theater since 1976. She has produced works by Anthony Davis, Peter Sellars, Jon Hassell and Charles Shere, among others. She also produced a contemporary music series at the Exploratorium Museum from 1976-1983 and produced New Music America '81 in San Francisco. She was formerly Associate Director of the American Music Center in NYC and Director of American Music Week. She is currently the Executive Director and Producer for the Paul Dresher Ensemble for whom she has produced WAS ARE WILL BE, SLOW FIRE, POWER FAILURE and PIONEERS. In 1990 she will produce AID & COMFORT II, a benefit concert sponsored by the University of California at Berkeley and the leading Bay Area restaurants, hosted by Laurie Anderson and featuring the leading contemporary music artists including Phil Glass, the Kronos Quartet, John Adams and David Byrne.