“The Rehearsal for the Destrution of Mu” is a shadow puppet play presented by the Detroit area group Monster Island. The play is an improvised shadow theater of four acts, that show the development and transformation of shadow theater (the earliest form of storytelling) from its psychic origins, on the mythical island of Mu, to the beginnings of cinema in Paris, France, at the end of the nineteenth century.
The first act follows strange patterns and objects traveling through formless space and colored gas, until they settle inside the mystical garden of Mu, (Act Two) where plant and sea life begin to appear and develop. Act Three is the further corruption of life forms and culture, that ends in the cataclysmic devastation of the island. The last act is the sinking of Mu and the migration of its life into physical beings that appear again, performing a shadow theater play in contemporary culture.
The play is performed as an improvisation that is interwoven with music and sound effecs produced by Monster Island. The play uses light and music in equal parts to create a vision that is a mixture of ritual, theater and sound. Inspired by the writings of Madame Blavatsky and Alfred Jarry, Mu theater is an experience that is both elemental and prophetic, a wheel of tantric statement, boundless energy and possibility -like watching ones own dreams appear.
Designs and constructions for the first puppets and backgrounds were made by Detroit artists Tom Carey and Cary Loren. Additions to the puppets will soon be supplemented by a variety of other artists.
Some images from the first “Rehersal for the Destruction of Mu” are avialable at Tom Carey’s Rusty Nail Studio Online blog. Below are a few images from the UFO factory show from Saturday, Jan. 5. – thanks to photographers Lee Ambrozy, Mary and Tom Carey.
Garden of Mu:
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Undersea creatures:
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Mu Princess Xie and Tiger:<
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More pictures from Mu! - These photos were taken by narrator and singer Lee Ambrozy:
