Calligrammes: a song cycle of visual poetry
6:00 pm Princeton Art Museum (Princeton, NJ 08544)
Calligrammes is a new song cycle for soprano Ariadne Greif and composer / accordionist Albert Behar that celebrates the centennial of Guillaume Apollinaire’s visual poetry. Inspired by Dadism, Futurism, and Cubism, Apollinaire set his poems in the shapes of doves, flowers, and clocks. Behar’s compositions bring Apollinaire’s poetic spontaneity into the musical realm, interpreting the zigzagging stanzas as a visual music score. Original costumes by designer Gretchen Vitamvas embed the poems into the very fabric of Ariadne’s evening gown and Albert’s three-piece suit. It’s sure to be an unforgettable evening of chanson and poetry.