Child of the Sun

CHILD OF THE SUN is feast of masks, puppets, and live music telling a tale of enchantment for all ages. Directed by Maria Lexa and featuring a spectrum of Sun & Moon Ensemble performers and collaborators, the performance will be accompanied by an exhibit of original masks made by our collaborative mask makers.

The performance draws from a variety of fables, tales, and legends, including the Mayan myth of La Llorona, the compassionate woman who weeps for the whole world. The woman and man who are the protagonists in the story do not wear masks, but all the other characters in the piece are played by puppets or masked characters from Sun & Moon Ensemble’s collection.

Many of the masks and puppets are handcrafted in Denmark, where Maria Lexa directed her own theatre group and cultural festival for over 20 years.

Child of the Sun will include some familiar characters from previous productions by Sun & Moon Ensemble, but will also include some puppets and masks, never yet shown in the Bay Area. The production will take place in spring, 2008. We have created a Scenario with Photos, a scene-by- scene storyboard, which tells what happens in the narrative and which puppets and masks are used in each scene of the story. Please enjoy!

Scenario with photos

Director Maria Lexa

Photographer John Spicer

Graphics and Web design Domingo Vazquez

Antique Mexican masks loaned from Jonathan French’s collection

Puppet and mask makers: Kirsten Gitz-Johansen, Claus Tams, Eva Klinting,

MariaLexa ,Sidsel Kirketerp

Costumes, structures, and accesories: Eri Neja, Dea Sten Hansen, Lisa Bønæs,

Jytte Jensen, Hanna Christensen, Maria Lexa, Sidsel Kirketerp

Sun & Moon Ensemble performers in photos: David Abad, Simone Bloch, Dietmar

Brinkman, Valentina Emeri, Jean Fontana, Will Howard, Maria Lexa, Chris Loar, Michael McCamish, Harvey Rabbit, Christina Shonkwiler, Adam Venker