We Players fans may remember Steve of Rova Saxophone Quartet from our 2015 production of HEROMONSTER. He's one of five musicians in our current production and we think he's just great! We caught up with Steve and asked him a few questions about the process.
Check back to learn more about our other collaborators and see Steve live in our upcoming production of BEOWULF March 18-April 16
Photo: Lauren Matley
Describe your experience of BEOWULF's collaborative process. How is it similar or different from past projects/ experiences?
Steve: Rova's last experience of being part of a theatrical production was for A.C.T.'s 1992 production of Antigone, directed by Carey Perloff and starring Elizabeth Peña and a young Wendell Pierce. The music was composed by David Lang of Bang on a Can. We were placed in black boxes at the two ends of the balcony, completely out of sight of the audience. So the experience was extremely different from Beowulf, where we are fully participating, onstage members of the production and co-creators of the music. This is a much more gratifying way to be part of the process, having (and receiving) creative input on all aspects of the play.
Share a favorite artistic experience: Why/ how did it impact you, affect your life, your work afterwards?
Steve: When I was in high school, my parents took me to several seasons of varied culture events, which included a production of Samuel Beckett's play Krapp's Last Tape. It was so far outside of my experience of, well, anything, that I think it made me aware of the possibilities of art that goes beyond the boundaries of what has come before, and that has been with me ever since then.
You can catch Steve (plus four other saxophone players!) in BEOWULF
Tickets on sale now! http://www.weplayers.org/beowulf-2017
Photo: Lauren Matley