IMPORTANT NOTICE:
The new dates for Blue Horse Opera are Friday September 19, Saturday September 20 and Sunday September 21.
Each of these dates has a different presenting partner, and each one has its own ticketing agent.
Friday September 19, the concert is part of the Vancouver Opera Voices series, co-presented with Pi. Tickets are available through Eventbrite. Click Here
Saturday September 20, the concert is being presented by Pi with support from the Vancouver Opera. We're selling tickets through this website. You can click on the ticket button above for tickets. Early bird pricing is $25.
Sunday September 21, the concert is part of VIFF Live. For tickets and information Click Here.
If you already purchased a ticket for Friday June 13, your ticket is valid for Friday September 19.
If you already purchased a ticket for Saturday June 14, your ticket is valid for Saturday September 20.
Thanks very much!
Richard Wolfe - Pi Theatre Artistic Director.
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"In a world upside down, they journey through a desert of their own making.”
Pi Theatre is set to present the live debut of Blue Horse Opera, a visionary song cycle by acclaimed Canadian artist Rick Maddocks.
Blue Horse Opera is a bold fusion of indie, folk, classical music, and dance, drawing inspiration from the climate emergency and the cinematic landscapes of spaghetti westerns. Maddocks, known for his evocative storytelling and musical innovation, performs this original song cycle accompanied by some of Vancouver’s finest musicians and dancers.
The production features a rich and eccentric musical palette, including twangy guitar, soprano vocals, trumpet, and flamenco dance, all seamlessly interwoven through a lyrical narrative that explores both environmental and emotional depths.
This performance marks the first live rendition of the Blue Horse Opera record. These live-concert experiences are celebrating the release of the recording.
Pi Theatre's Provocateurs Performance series is dedicated to expanding the traditional definitions of genre, bringing powerful events that use art to explore a range of questions, styles, and themes. Blue Horse Opera is a testament to this mission, promising an unforgettable night of music and storytelling.
BLUE HORSE OPERA FEATURES SOME OF CANADA'S FINEST MUSICIANS COMING TOGETHER FOR AN EXTRAORDINARY PROJECT!
Rick Maddocks (composer, vocals and acoustic guitar): Rick Maddocks’s work bridges music, fiction and stage performance. He wrote, and performed in, the experimental opera The Meal, which premiered at the PuSh Festival, was re-staged at Pacific Theatre, and was later released as an independent album. Other projects include Cabalcor: An Extracted History, a multimedia novel-and-album created with the interdisciplinary group Sun Belt. His previous recordings include the albums El Ángel Exterminator and 01 with The Beige.
Maria Avila (flamenco dance) is an established independent dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Recent achievements include completing a MFA in Dance at York University and being awarded a mentorship to study with Myriam Allard. She recently received grants from Canada Arts Council and BC Arts Council to study in Sevilla, Spain, as well as performing in the Coetaní Experimental Flamenco Festival in Athens, Greece. she has trained at Al Mozaico Flamenco Dance Academy, Karen Flamenco, and completed Centro Flamenco's professional training program. She currently performs with Calle Verde and La Triana.
Dory Hayley (soprano vocals): A leading voice in Canada’s contemporary and experimental music scene, Dory has been a soloist with the Vancouver Symphony, the Vancouver Island Symphony, the Allegra Chamber Orchestra, the Turning Point Ensemble, and Capriccio Basel, and has appeared in recitals across four continents. She is a member of the Erato Ensemble, the Broadwood Duo, and the Hayley-Laufer Duo, and has recorded with Postcommodity, and the Negative Zed ensemble. She is the Artistic Co-Director of the Blueridge Chamber Music Festival.
JP Carter (trumpet) JP’s extensive discography totals over 100recordings, and is an excellent reflection of his diverse musical interests.He’s played on Juno award-winning albums by Dan Mangan, Fond Of Tigers, and Alpha Yaya Diallo, and recorded with artists such as MaryMargaret O’Hara, Marc Ribot, Siskiyou,The N.O.W. Society,MotherMother,Handmade Blade(w. guitarist Aram Bajakian & cellist Peggy Lee), Frazey Ford,Nicholas Krgovich, saxophonist Michael Blake, guitaristTony Wilson,Great Aunt Ida,Sick Boss, Gordon Grdina’s HARAM, among many more.
Tyson Naylor (keyboards) Vancouver-born,Berlin-based keyboardist Tyson Naylor has performed internationally in very diverse musical settings, from Free Jazz to Soul to chamber ensembles. He’s played with Destroyer, Frazey Ford, and Dan Mangan, as well as larger groups such as the Warsaw Improviser’s Orchestra, Vancouver SymphonyOrchestra, and Turning Point Ensemble. Other artists Naylor has collaborated include Aram Bajakian, Peggy Lee, Tristan Honsinger, Dylan vander Schyff, Tobias Delius, Gord Grdina, Kenton Loewen, Tony Wilson, AxelDörner, Mats Äleklint and Lina Allemano.
Current and former projects include Tyson Naylor Trio, Dálava, Ron Samworth’s Dogs Do Dream, TinyPyramids, Sun Ra’s Star System, Sick Boss, and Limbs of the Stars. Tyson’s debut recording with his trio and guest clarinetistFrancois Houle was released on the Songlines label to positive reviews.
Stephen Lyons (drums) is a JUNO Award-winning multi-instrumentalist who’s been active in Vancouver’s creative community since 2003. Critically-acclaimed for his visceral output as the composer/guitarist of the avant-rock septet Fond of Tigers, Lyons is also a noted improviser, arranger, and producer. Recent interdisciplinary collaborations include work with Theatre Conspiracy, illustrator/animator Amanda Cassidy, and Pi Theatre, where he appeared as The Drummer in 2024’s Canadian premiere of Enda Walsh’s Medicine. Applied Silence, his creative partnership with playwright José Teodoro, has yielded several boundary-pushing projects including the double-LP debut album and spatial sound installation, Screen Door.
James Meger (Bass): James Meger is a Vancouver-based bassist and composer working primarily in the fields of jazz, free improvisation and rock. As a performer his work has been showcased through national and international tours and through recording projects and concerts alongside artists including Darius Jones, Frazey Ford, Kenny Wollesen, Chris Speed, Kris Davis, Wayne Horvitz, Lori Freedman, Ig Henneman, Peggy Lee and Tony Wilson, among others. James is also active as a sideman and co-leader in various ongoing projects, which showcase his versatility as a player and arranger. These include: Sick Boss,Darius Jones’ fLuXkit Vancouver, Josh Zubot’s Strings, The Bruno Hubert Trio,La Syrie Libre, I Think I Saw You See Me, Elisa Thorn’s HUE, The Sumner Brothers and Strange Worlds, among others.
As a composer and producer, James has written and arranged music for bands (Sick Boss,Braveheart, Debra-Jean Creelman), interdisciplinary dance (Lesley Telford’sSpooky Action, Anecdote and Unison), music-theatre (collaborating withBarbara Adler on Pathetic Fallacy, Klasika and Decoy), andfor sound installations (Signals from the Mountain, 2015).
Jon Wood (electric guitar, lap steel): A multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and producer with over 30 years’ experience, Jon has made many albums with artists such as Cam Penner and The Beige. He’s also released a rich and textured discography of eight “fractured-Americana” recordings for his own long-term project Flophouse jr., including recent releases When We Should Have Known and Hall. In addition, he’s worked on a number of independent Vancouver theatre productions and workshops with Theatre Conspiracy, Pi Theatre and other companies.
This performance is supported by the Goverment of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage.
