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Part classic animation, part David Lynch and part indescribable, Now Showing is a 10 minute surrealistic trip. Shehzar Abro, a transplant from Karachi, tries to comprehend North American culture by entering the world of the musical Oklahoma! — as an animated avatar!
In Binaural Audio by James Maxwell: Headphones recommended!
Now Showing was inspired by Fight With a Stick’s 2018 and 2019 stage production Oh What a Beautiful Morning!, in which we playfully investigated the legacy of the iconic, genre-defining American musical Oklahoma! — which receives 800 separate productions a year! Using the 1955 film of Oklahoma! as a reference, each collaborating artist was asked to examine and redefine their relationship to the musical, the world it represents and its cinema-size characters.
Shehzar joins two of the original creators of Oh What a Beautiful Morning! — composer James Maxwell and director Alex Lazaridis, as well as assistant animator, Raech Sardina, for his own exploration, this time using the tools of digital animation. Now Showing includes short video excerpts from our stage production, featuring performers Hayley Gawthrop and Hin Hilary Leung, video creations from artist Josh Hite, and set constructions from set designer Paula Viitanen.
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Video excerpts from Oh What a Beautiful Morning! (2019), A Vista (2018), and Cinerama (2017). (See "past works" page for contributor details).
Video excerpts from Revolutions (2016). (See "past works" page for contributor details).
Watch the full length version of our 2019 remount of Oh What a Beautiful Morning!
Excerpts from Steppenwolf (2015). See "past works" page for contributor details).