My friend Diane Fredgant helping me mount the show
at Jewish Theater Collaborative/ Milagro Theater !

I couldn't have done it without her help. Diane has an attention to detail! 

Here's some info on how I work....and pictures of each mask will appear one by one, for the next several days.

Hebrew letters often dance across a fanciful screen in my mind’s eye. Translating this dance of letters and images becomes a meditative experience. I journey deeper into the meanings and fight the limitations that a solid yet fragile medium offers me. As I cut and shape the glass, I find myself singing a niggun (a wordless tune) or an actual verse that has inspired my art.  The rest of my world is put on hold; I lose track of time, and I become fully absorbed in meanings beneath meanings and beyond meanings. The product of my meditation is rarely as complex as the journey I have taken. I laughingly refer to my work as shiny, pretty things....but beneath that language is a hidden urge to share my relationship with the sacred.

I am grateful to Sacha Reich and the Jewish Theater Collaborative for the generous invitation to create masks of some of the central character in Chaim Potok’s book, Davita’s Harp.

The process was incredibly similar to studying Torah. I found myself reading and re-reading the text; searching for meanings and trying to understand not only what was written, but also appreciating the white space surrounding the words. 

Sometimes I sang union songs, other times I sang a noggin or some of the prayers Davita and Annie were silenced from singing. I humbly offer my interpretation of these dear characters. They have become like family to me. 

Davina's Harp: World Premier in PDX!!!!

Lana Davita Chandal

JEWISH THEATER COLLABORATIVE 
presents an amazing world premier presentation of Chaim Potok's book, Davita's Harp at Milagro Theater. 
This is a page to stage production that is superbly acted, directed, and produced.

THIS IS MUST SEE THEATER!!!!
get your tickets while there are a few left!
jewishtheatrecollaborative.org


I've been talking about my journey on this blog for awhile. I've tried to share some of my process with you. 

I've been working hard to craft masks that honor the characters. I am incredibly humbled by this project and must say, I learned a lot in the process.

Gratitude goes to a number of people. Sacha Reich is the visionary and director behind Jewish Theater Collaborative (JTC.) Thank you Sacha for your generous invitation to participate !

My wonderful husband suffered through countless "What do you think?" questions, not to mention the messes I created in the process of making these.

Diane Fredgant is a dear friend and talented artist who gave up her precious free time to not only help me mount the show....but also reprinted and mounted my written descriptions of my work.

Last but not least....Chaim Potok (z"l) who wrote a fabulous book that addresses historical topics that were often taboo. He approaches Judaism from a feminist perspective...a daring endeavor in his time. 

MONOTYPE MAN

Jakob Daw's Chin

• n. - (biology) a taxonomic group with a single member (a single species or genus)

n. - A typesetting machine operated from a keyboard that sets separate characters
Jakob is an interesting character! Creator of stories, somewhat mystical, somewhat magical; they are his vehicle for describing the chaos he witnesses...but the solutions seem elusive as he struggles to resolve the the rising and falling action of his words.
He isn't a healthy man, but he clearly has a heart for justice and humanity. He takes too much to heart, feeling the pain in the world. 

Monotype Man seems an appropriate nickname for this unique character in the book DAVITA'S HARP written by Chayim Potok.
I am excited to reveal Jakob and his cohort at Milagro Theater when Jewish Theater Collaborative opens their PAGEtoSTAGE production in about 10 days.
You can buy tickets on their website:http://jewishtheatrecollaborative.org

Hats Off

Michael Chandon's Hat before firing

For those of you just "tuning in", I am working on a series of character masks for the Page-to-Stage production of Davita's Harp staged by Jewish Theater Collaborative right here in Portland.

The big "reveal" will come next month when the masks go on exhibition at Milagro Theater.  

In the mean time, I am sharing progress notes but won't fully reveal the masks until they are on display.

Michael's hat will be embellished with a hat band, press card and political button. I'll share it with you soon!

New Masks on the Horizon

Davita's Harp by Chayim Potok

I'm just wrapping up the drawings for my next set of masks.
                        Oh what an honor this is! 

Sacha Reich is the director of the Stage-to-Page version of Potok's book Davita's Harp. This wonderful production will be staged by The Jewish Theater Collaborative (JTC) here in Portland, Oregon at Milagro Theater.

Sacha saw my masks at the A.R.T. lobby last spring and asked if I would be interested in creating masks featuring the main characters of this book.  I am grateful for such an invitation. Of course, I said yes!

I have to say, it is a bit like studying Torah. One must "turn it, and turn it, and turn it again" to discover the layers of meaning and glean from the white spaces between the words and the lines.

I confess to having fallen in love with these characters. I have read and re-read the book. I sat in on the first reading by the actors, attended a book talk, and then returned to re-read again.

It'll be another few days before I can cut the glass and get everything rolling. First I have to work on Davita's eyes, Annie's lips, and Jakob's nose. This is the challenge for me. DRAWING!

Once I can get past this phase, I am certain I will discover new challenges....but for now I'm just going to pretend that it will be smooth sailing from this point forward.

I'll post photos of my progress and will also share how I thought about each character as I construct the masks.

I'll speak more about JTC in future posts, but for now I'll just direct you to their link because you must get tickets to this production!
http://www.jewishtheatrecollaborative.org