Guerrilla Folk Punk Opera COUNTING SHEEP Makes U.S. Premiere Tonight at 3LD

Hot Feat USA Ltd presents the U.S. Premiere of COUNTING SHEEP, a breathtaking immersive theatrical experience that brings audiences inside the heart of the 2013-2014 Ukrainian revolution on Maidan Square, and offers a deeply personal retelling of the popular uprising that succeeded in toppling the Ukrainian government.

The production is created by Mark Marczyk and Marichka Marczyk, and inspired by their own experiences during the protests.

This groundbreaking guerrilla folk opera features Toronto's Lemon Bucket Orkestra (Canada's only balkan-klezmer-gypsy-party- punk-super-band) and began previews on Tuesday, November 28th and will run through Sunday, December 17th at the 3LD Theatre, 80 Greenwich Street. Directed by Kevin Newbury, the production will have its official opening tonight, December 5th at 8:00PM.

COUNTING SHEEP is a deeply personal retelling of the Maidan revolution in Ukraine -- an immersive Ukrainian guerrilla folk-opera and striking, visceral exploration into the politics of revolution, beating with the heart of a people yearning for a better tomorrow. It is a call-to-action and affirmation of the human condition, inviting audiences to be part of the Revolution. The 12-member cast envelops audience members in this historic time period, as they perform moments of revolution while immersed in projections of real-life news coverage and found-footage of the revolution that began in 2013.

COUNTING SHEEP is performed using gorgeous Ukrainian polyphony choral music, exuberant musical performances and vibrant visuals, offering a visceral view into the lived experiences of those who were involved in the Maidan revolution, and, to an extent, any modern day political revolution. Anticipation, excitement, fear, loss, anger and the will to keep fighting -- audience members are by the revolutionaries' side, riding the wave of each emotion. Note: Tickets are available in two zones: immersive (which also includes some food) and viewing.

The production was first workshopped at Toronto's St. Vladimir Institute in February 2015 followed by a second sold-out run at the SummerWorks Performance Festival in Toronto during August, 2015. It then received a second, award-winning, sold-out run in May/June, 2016, in Toronto and was the sold-out smash success of the 2016 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It has been awarded the Scotsman Fringe First, Amnesty International Freedom of Expression Awards, The Summerhall Top Prize, Dark Chat Special Award, Total Theatre (shortlist), Carol Tambor Best of Fringe (shortlist), TVBomb Groundbreaker (shortlist). In 2017, it toured to the Rush Festival in Germany, Kilkenny Arts Festival in Ireland and Freedom Festival in England. 2017 also saw Counting Sheep be nominated for multiple Dora Mavor-Moore Award (Toronto's theatre awards) winning for best ensemble and choreography.

The cast of COUNTING SHEEP features Mark Marczyk, Marichka Marczyk, Dmytro Nechepurenko, Eli Camilo, Jaash Singh, Michael Louis Johnson, Nathan Dell-Vandenberg, Oskar Lambarri, Tamar Ilana, Stephania Woloshyn and Volodymyr Bedzvin.

COUNTING SHEEP features set design by Vita Tzykun, sound design by Tyler Kieffer and Brandon Wolcott, lighting design by Eric Southern and video design by Greg Emetaz. Heather Hogan is the Stage Manager, Rory Howson is the Production Manager, Associate Director is Michael Rubenfeld, Assistant Production Designer is Matthew Alexander Cherkas and the production's General Manager is Evan Bernardin.

Mark and Marichka Marczyk met and fell in love on Independence Square in Kyiv at the height of the Revolution of Dignity. They have traveled across Ukraine volunteering, performing for soldiers and DPs, and writing about their experiences (Brick Literary Magazine, Humber Literary Review, NOW Magazine, Carte Blanche, CBC). Together, they created Counting Sheep and perform in Lemon Bucket Orkestra, Toronto's infamous balkan-klezmer-gypsy-party-punk-super-band. In May 2015, they invited everyone to their wedding at Dufferin Grove Park and raised $20k in wedding gifts for Patriot Defence, an organization that provides NATO-grade medical kits to combat and civilian medics in Ukraine. Reuters showed up and told the world (Globe and Mail, Daily Mail UK, Global News, etc.) In Toronto, Mark and Marichka also teach traditional eastern and central Ukrainian singing workshops together.

Kevin Newbury is a theatre, opera and film director. Kevin has directed over 60 original productions. Recent highlights include the world premieres of Fellow Travelers (Cincinnati Opera, New York Times Best Opera of 2016), Bel Canto (Lyric Opera of Chicago and PBS Great Performances) and Kansas City Choir Boy (with Courtney Love, NYC and national tour). His work has also been seen at the Park Avenue Armory, Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Barcelona Liceu, San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Bard Summerscape, L'Opera de Montreal, Minnesota Opera, the Wexford Festival (Ireland), San Francisco Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Portland Opera and Glimmerglass Opera. NY theatre work includes the GLAAD-award-winning play Candy & Dorothy. His two short films, Monsura is Waiting and Stag have screened at forty film festivals collectively, both winning several awards.

The Lemon Bucket Orkestra is Canada's only balkan-klezmer-gypsy-party-punk-super-band. Born on the streets of Toronto as a busking band in 2010, the original quartet of guerrilla-folk troubadours quickly amassed a battalion of troops armed with brass and bows and started touring the world. LBO has been nominated for several awards, heralded as ground-breaking by international media, and has performed at international festivals across the globe, but their greatest achievement is their ability to embody the dynamic space between "home" and "exotic" and to welcome audiences into the celebration of that space. LBO's members have even gone as far as the eastern front of the war in Ukraine, using their music as catharsis, support, and even a platform for storytelling and information sharing in a political arena obfuscated by propaganda and misinformation. Featured in COUNTING SHEEP, their music helps tell the story of the Maidan Revolution and thrusts audiences into feeling what band-members Mark and Marichka Marczyk felt when the protests in Kyiv escalated and snipers opened fire.

Tickets are $52.22 - $83.27 and available via Brown Paper Tickets: www.brownpapertickets.com/event/3131330 or call the 3LD Box office at 1-800-838-3006. Performances of COUNTING SHEEP are on Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8PM with matinees on Saturdays and Sundays at 3PM. Visit countingsheeprevolution.com for more information.

To post a comment, you must register and login.