Forms of Fire created by Lynnea Villanoava MD. Written by Andrei Codrescu, Lynnea Villanova, and Micah Ariel James, and directed and choreographed by Clove Galilee, is a powerful, multimedia theater experience that intertwines the lives of three people—a scientist, a music teacher, and a dancer—each grappling with the long shadows of personal and collective trauma.
Through a fusion of scientific exploration and artistic expression, the play delves into the fragile human psyche, asking how and whether we can truly rewire our minds to overcome the past.
Set against the backdrop of experimental neuromodulation, the characters’ journeys are mirrored in kinetic sculptures that evolve as metaphors for their fractured identities and disparate quests for healing. With a chorus of dancers embodying their internal struggles, Forms of Fire offers a poignant meditation on memory, resilience, and the transformative power of connection.
This expanded staged reading offers a first integration of EEG biosensed integrations into the piece. EEG headsets turn what's happening inside a nervous system (or multiple people’s nervous systems) into something the whole room can hear and see. For this iteration of our evolving piece, these unfiltered central and autonomic signals (not repressed or condensed as we would our verbal or facial expressions) create a communication channel containing information not usually accessible to another person’s senses. For our creative purposes, we convert and use this communication–information to spark live musical improvisation — the musician can now play with (or against) the collective brain of an actor, an audience member, or the room . The audience is not only witness but participant in the experiment.
MEET THE CREATIVE TEAM
Co-Authors: Andrei Codrescu, Lynnea Villanova, Micah Ariel James
Dramaturg: Micah Ariel James
Director/Choreographer: Clove Galilee (Mabou Mines)
Music: Melvin Gibbs
Sculptors: Mimi Gross
Installation Art: Jingjing Lin
Sound Design: Dean Parker
Lighting Design: Cat Tate Starmer
Engineer: Ted Stabile
Scientific Advisor: Boris Gutkin
Special thanks to EEG Artist – consulting & contributing: Nina Sobell, BrainArt pioneer
CAST
Amanda - Liz Colarte
Edgar & Diego -
Irene -
Mila - Christianna Nelson
Sasha -Tony Torn
Zeb -
The Chorus - Nicola Bosco-Alvarez
Narration - Susan Hwang & Andrei Codrescu