The following are unusual projects that don't 100% fit into Original Works or Theatre Design, and includes offbeat creations of our own, as well as work we've done for performance artists who work in unconventional non-theatre spaces.


VELVET VÁCLAV
(UNICEF auction doll)
Evolve was one of several theatre companies asked to create a doll inspired by the Havel Festival, for a UNICEF auction to benefit needy children in Eastern Europe. Tanya & Barry came up with "Velvet Václav," a play on the traditional "dress-up" doll in tribute to President Havel himself. His velvet (for the Velvet Revolution) jacket opens to reveal a typewriter near his heart and his famous "Charter 77" printed on the jacket's lining. In an inside pocket, he has a symbolic "key to the castle," and by unzipping his mouth, one can unreel a ribbon bearing an actual quote from the "playwright president". We're happy to say he found a very good home. Photos by Edward Einhorn.



HOPE & ANCHOR
(Third Rail Projects)
Evolve's Barry Weil turned dancer Marissa Nielsen-Pincus into an unconventional mermaid for this outdoor dance-theatre piece (by Zach Morris & Keely Garfield) at NYC's South Street Seaport. Marissa had to crawl and flop across concrete and cobblestones in her fishtail, as well as climb fences and drag herself through some truly nasty puddles. We're very proud of the fact that the tail (made of layered, latex-impregnated fabric) only needed one small hole patched throughout the entire run. The mermaid character (and the tail) have since made appearances in Third Rail's Squall and Undercurrents and Exchange. Photo by Arthur Donowski.


UNDERCURRENTS AND EXCHANGE
(Third Rail Projects)
(click the image for more photos)
This project, a series of interrelated dance pieces taking place inside the Winter Garden of NYC's World Finance Center, also features a collection of mysteriously evolving art installations by Zach Morris. As one installation required a (somewhat fanciful) reconstruction of Archaeopteryx, the feathered dinosaur-like creature known as the "first bird," Zach called on Barry to create a one-foot-tall, completely posable model of the creature. It's something of an homage to the work of one of Barry's major influences, stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen. For more on Undercurrents and Exchange, and their other work, go to Third Rail's website. To see a video detailing all of the phases of the changing installations, click here (the Archaeopteryx display begins at 6:20). Photos by Zach Morris.


THE STEAMPUNK HAUNTED HOUSE
(Third Rail Projects)
(click the image for a closer look)
Barry designed and created an assortment of masks and puppets for the 2009 and 2010 versions of this elegant, artistic frightfest, staged inside the 100-year-old Abrons Arts Center on the Lower East Side of NYC by Zach Morris and Third Rail Projects. Barry's creations included a clockwork mask with functional, moving gears (pictured above); a huge mechanical "Beast" skeleton and a trio of giant spiders attempting to disguise themselves as humans. For more information on the Steampunk Haunted House and their other projects, go to Third Rail's website. Photo by Chad Heird.


FEAST OF THE DEAD
(Donna Ahmadi/Mantis Dance Company)
For this eerily funny outdoor celebration of the Mexican Day of the Dead, choreographer Donna Ahmadi asked Barry to create four giant skull heads with lots of character, that could be worn by dancers and actually appear to "eat" a banquet's worth of food. The result, as you can see, managed to be charming and disturbing at the same time.


THE 12 DAYS OF NYC PUPPET CHRISTMAS (Manhattan Marionettes)
(Click the link below to watch the video on YouTube)
The 12 Days of NYC Puppet Christmas
For the 2014 holiday season, Manhattan Marionettes asked Evolve to join several other NYC-based puppet companies in contributing verses to this version of the classic carol "The 12 Days of Christmas". We chose to use a pair of robot puppets that were originally built for our piece Evolution: A Tale of Friendship (you'll notice their strong resemblance to the other Evolution characters), but were never used. We're glad they got to finally make their debut alongside so many of our talented colleagues: Joshua Holden, Carol Sterling, Brian T. Carson, James Wojtal Jr., Ronny Wasserstrom, Michael J. Meindl, Craig Marin & Olga Felgemacher Marin, Kim Fraczed, Erik McGregor and Morgan Jenness.


STAR WARS KAMIKAZE:
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
(Drama of Works)
(Click the image for a closer look)
And sometimes we just get completely silly. This was a fun project created by our friends at Drama of Works as part of their Punch Puppet Slam series at Dixon Place. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back was divided into seven sections and handed to seven different puppet companies to interpret as they saw fit. Evolve was given the section containing the asteroid field scene, Lord Vader's communication with the Emperor and the introduction of the bounty hunters. Our interpretation went from the sublime to the ridiculous: the sublime included the insanely detailed rod puppets (can you tell we're Star Wars fans?), the ridiculous involved handing out crumpled balls of paper and encouraging the audience to pelt us with them so we could simulate traveling through the asteroid field. Above, L-R: Chewbacca, C-3PO, Princess Leia and Han Solo. Inset: Tanya, performing the Darth Vader puppet, and Barry, who's put his sweatshirt hood on and is holding a flashlight under his face so he can accurately impersonate Emperor Palpatine.

MISTER MANTIS:
THE DANCE OF THE PRAYING MANTIS
(Donna Ahmadi/Mantis Dance Company)
About 10 years ago, dancer/choreographer Donna Ahmadi asked Barry to create a praying mantis mask for this piece. This year, she asked for a second one, plus a moth puppet. Barry found the experience something akin to collaborating with his younger self. Tanya came up with the idea of using opalescent interference paints on the insects' eyes (she had used them years before to paint the hue-shifting feathers of a group of pigeon puppets). The resulting piece was performed at the Urban Garden Room, a glassed-in area that's part of the Bank of America building by Bryant Park in NYC. The audience consisted of passersby watching from the street. It was a fun project to be part of, and we remain in awe of the movement skills of Donna (as the green mantis) and fellow dancer Otis Cook (as the brown mantis).