Last of My Species: The Fearless Songs of Laarna Cortaan
Dates: September 5 – September 13, 2009
Redmoon spent the summer of 2009 unveiling objects and songs through guerilla performances across the city culminating in this larger-than-life theatrical concert. Combining elements of Redmoon’s Momentary Opera and involving a variety of original machines, including the Drum Cart, the Gramophone Machine, the Weather Machine, and the Impossibly Tall Ladder Machine, Last of My Species: The Fearless Songs of Laarna Cortaan spent two weekends mesmerizing over 7,000 people with its amazing aerial acrobatics and the invention of “Norwegian Pop star” Laarna Cortaan. Set against Lake Michigan’s magical waterfront at the Chicago Park District’s South Belmont Harbor, the mass ensemble of nearly 100 musicians, dancers, actors, and acrobats came together to create a unique experience the city won’t soon forget.
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Selected Reviews:
“cheerfully weird, droll and amusing…”
“Last of My Species” would surely go down well in Europe, home of such ersatz cultural obsessions as the European Song Contest and outdoor fetes of naturalistic art. But even though it has (and is) a lot of fun, this is still a genuinely weird piece that keeps you compelled for 75 minutes, because you’re never quite sure where the show is going, and certainly not where Cortaan has been.”
-Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune
“Yet be assured, when Redmoon sets up shop near Belmont Harbor in early September — with Lake Michigan and its rocky barrier wall as a grand backdrop — there will be no shortage of astonishing things to encounter…”
“The spectacles devised by Chicago’s Redmoon theater are renowned for the way they capture the imagination of both adults and kids, down to the tiniest member of the diaper crowd. The secret? It’s that the company’s creative team simply remains true to its wholly lunatic aesthetic and hypnotizes its audience with its commitment.”
“The spectacle’s grand climactic pas de deux, involving a kiss that seals the deal, also is special. Talk about delayed gratification: The final meeting of lips here — brilliantly choreographed, and executed with seemingly total fearlessness by aerialists Tony Hernandez and Rani Waterman, who dangle from a giant sliding ladder contraption – also says more about the link between trust and love than any novel.”
-Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun Times
“As if Belmont Harbor isn’t already one of Chicago’s magical locations, as if Redmoon Theater isn’t already one of Chicago’s magical theater companies, now one has converged on the other to create an explosively delightful spectacle event!”
“Part Bjork-esque concert, part theatrically pagan ritual, part absurdist opera, part circus of the strange and part living breathing bizarre Dali-esque children’s fairy tale, Spectacle ’09: Last of My Species: The Fearless
Songs of Laarna Cortaan delivers an extraordinary ritual to the followers of the beguiling cult of Redmoon, and a grandiose indoctrination to any Redmoon virgins. No sacrifice required, just a baptism in the rapture of whimsy.”
“…stunning…”
“Spectacle ’09: Last of My Species, The Fearless Songs of Laarna Cortaan is the perfect way to close off the summer and welcome the first hints of fall with an unusual sacrament of the silly and sensational.”
“Novices will be dazzled. Devotees will squeal. Redmoon Theater dares all to BE BOMBASTIC and with the euphorically idiotic and exotic Spectacle ‘09: Last of My Species, The Fearless Songs of Laarna Cortaan, they lead the charge!”
-Venus Harris, Chicago Stage Review
“… spectacular…”
“highly recommended”
“How do you explain Redmoon Theater? Is it performance art? Is it mass hysteria? Is it music, is it acting, is it dancing? Is it storytelling, is it strange? Does it make you scratch your head? It does all that AND MORE!”
-Michael Lehet, Chicago Now
“It’s a concert! It’s a theatrical event! Eh, we’re not sure what to call it: It’s Redmoon. Chicago’s premiere producer of fantastical happenings unleashed its new spectacle on the lakefront last weekend, a vision of mechanical props and otherworldly characters set to a live concert by the singer Laarna Cortaan (herself from another planet: Norway). Whatever it is, don’t miss its final few dates.”
-Chicagomag.com
“Last of My Species: The Fearless Songs of Laarna Cortaan totally blew me away–what a blast.”
“Bits of cheeky comedy, zany costumed armies, creative (and dangerous?) props (like a human powered moving drum kit!), mixed with an amazing acrobatic finale, all with a laid back, non‐traditional, outdoor vibe in South Belmont Harbor.“
“Very cool.“
-Chris Force, Alarm Magazine