The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia (UBC) presents Manual Cinema’s Ada/Ava, a haunting masterpiece for stage and screen on February 7, 2017 at 7:30pm in the Telus Studio Theatre as part of the Beyond Words series. This hit of the 2016 Edinburgh Fringe Festival merges puppetry, multimedia and live ensemble music to animate a gothic tale of twins, the elderly Ada and Ava, and the ethereal adventure that ensues as one grieving sister seeks out her deceased “other half.”
Wendy Atkinson, Programming Manager at the Chan Centre and curator of the Beyond Words series, says, “We often think of films as big blockbusters with dazzling special effects, but Ada/Ava offers a different type of cinematic experience: a version stripped to basic components as simple as paper cutouts and vintage overhead projectors. Mixing these handmade visuals with cutting-edge technologies, Manual Cinema make us nostalgic for age-old techniques, while exciting us about the possibilities of modern theatrical ingenuity.”
Ada/Ava is a poignant look at aging and mortality, the mourning of loss, and the duality of the self and other. Set in seaside New England, the ghostly fantasy follows identical and inseparable twins who, having grown old together, build their life’s routines around each other. One fateful afternoon, their indelible bond is broken – Ava passes away leaving Ada behind. Walking the inescapable steps of grief, Ada becomes swept up by a travelling carnival into a journey that begins in a mirror maze but ultimately takes her across the thresholds of life and death.
Founded in 2010, Manual Cinema is a performance collective, design studio, and film/video production company. With expertise in choreography, movement, composition, interactive media, and puppeteering, Manual Cinema’s Co-Artistic Directors Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller and Kyle Vegter are a formidable force whose talent has taken them around the world.
Chan Centre Beyond Words series presents: Manual Cinema's Ada/Ava
Date: Tuesday, February 7, 2017 at 7:30pm
Ticket prices: From $20
Address: Chan Centre for the Performing Arts University of British Columbia 6265 Crescent Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1
Box Office: 604-822-2697 /chancentre.com
In person at the Chan Centre ticket office
Open Tue-Sat, 12pm-5pm
Website: chancentre.com
