Neutral Hero
A leading figure on the New York scene, Richard Maxwell has conquered the world with his inimitable style. Supported by surgically precise language, his intimist theatre exposes the American myths buried under modern life. A musician, Maxwell has long wanted to create a musical show and his dream has now come true with Neutral Hero, a new work which he describes as a ‘country opera’. Maxwell’s heroes are anonymous individuals who live in small insignificant towns. Beneath the gas stations and drive-ins is the expanse of an obscure kingdom: one of violent impulses, American history and wounds left by the civil war. In a tone of alienating neutrality and lulled by country and blues melodies, a disturbing epic unfolds in Neutral Hero, looming up from the depths of America. Get those boots on!
writer, director, composer Richard Maxwell | set, light designer Sascha van Riel | costume designer Kaye Voyce | technical consultant Bozkurt Karasu | company manager Nicholas Elliott | dramaturg Tom King | performers Lakpa Bhutia, Janet Coleman, Keith Connolly, Alex Delinois, Bob Feldman, Jim Fletcher, Jean Ann Garrish, Rosie Goldensohn, Paige Martin, James Moore, Philip Moore, Andie Springer, Andrew Weisell | presentation Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Kaaitheater | production Kunstenfestivaldesarts | executive production New York City Players | co-production Wiener Festwochen, Festival d’Automne à Paris, Les Spectacles vivants – Centre Pompidou (Paris), Kampnagel (Hamburg), Hebbel am Ufer/HAU (Berlin), Théâtre de l’Agora, Scène Nationale d’Evry et de l’Essonne, Festival TransAmériques (Montréal), De Internationale Keuze van de Rotterdamse Schouwburg, La Bâtie - Festival de Genève, Théâtre Garonne (Toulouse) | support Greenwall Foundation
