CHANT DOWN BABYLON

CHANT DOWN BABYLON

CHANT DOWN BABYLON

Fuerza Bruta officially trumps the Aerosmith laser light show down at the Planetarium as the official Trippiest Show to Watch When You’re Shrooming With Eight Friends.

The Buenos Aires gang that created De La Guarda is back again at the Daryl Roth Theatre at Union Square, and NYCTACO was blown away. Guests walk into an empty room with nothing to see and nowhere to turn. For the next 70 minutes, you are attacked by treadmills, rotating machines, and a massive transparent pool that descends on the audience, low enough to touch, filled with writhing bathing beauties. (you can touch them too.)

NYCTACO got a chance to ask Michael Hollick, one of the show’s performers, just what the h is going on…

Hey, Michael, what’s up. Your show blew my mind. How did you audition for such a unique show? No Tom Stoppard monologues, I take it.

The audition was intense. We ran a lot on the treadmill, which is a major element of the show. We also did a lot of dancing. Obviously, performers in the show need to have stamina and athleticism, and the audition reflected this. No Stoppard monologues were required, but strong actors are required. Performers must have an enormous capacity for emotional expression. Real, raw emotion is what makes the show compelling. Without that it would be just a bunch of tricks.

I don’t care how many times night after night you get up there – that would scare anyone sh*tless. What do you do pre-show to relax and get into the right mental mindframe?

Focus and concentration are paramount. We arrive 2 hours before show time. We have a “track meeting” in which we learn what roles we will each be performing that night (roles are rotated on a nightly basis). After the track meeting we have a 45 minute group warmup. This is an opportunity for us to get ready physically and mentally, but more importantly it is a chance for us to come together as a group. The show is potentially dangerous if the cast and crew do not function as a team.

The cast seems real tight, in a tribal, scuzzy, magic bus type of way. Do you guys take peyote in Central Park or any sh*t like that?

We are a very close-knit group. Most of us have been working together for years. You have to trust that your fellow performer has your back during the show. We have our share of drum circles, but no magic bus….. I think someone in the cast has a magic Camry.

Sources say you’re working on some multi-chapter sci-fi fantasy opus. What’s that all about?

Wow. I’m not sure if I’m capable of an “opus”. Basically, I’m experimenting with telling one story in many different ways. Using different character perspectives, genres and styles, even different mediums. I’m fascinated by how a story becomes an enduring story or myth. I think it might have something to do with varying and diverse interpretations that allow the story to speak to a wider audience.

Wow. You’re talking like a riddle wrapped inside an enigma right there. What is in your future after Fuerza Bruta?

I’m looking forward to taking what I’ve learned from this amazing experience and applying it toward my own personal creative exploits, including my “opus”. I would love to do more film work. I make a lot of music with my scuzzy tribe and will always keep up with that. But what I really want is a garden with tomatoes, strawberries, vegetables and, yes, flowers.

Where is your favorite place to get a taco?

La Paloma in Hell’s Kitchen – 45th street and 9th ave. Cheap, fresh and delicious!

www.fuerzabruta.net

Live painting Took place in brooklyn . . . . . .

these 3 together make one SICK collab!!!!!!