Bellerophon’s Shadow: Voyage of the Pegasus. Minnesota Fringe Festival 2022.
Trailer
PHOTO GALLERY
PROGRAM:
SUMMARY:
Deep in the outer reaches of space, Resource Scout #232 is on an open-ended mission to find and harvest valuable resources from planets and shipwrecks. When she happens upon the crashed ship Pegasus, and the audio recordings of its former captain Bellerophon, she finds herself embroiled in his unfinished quest to find the mysterious Olympus Coordinates. Her quest takes her to a variety of uncharted planets where she encounters all manner of alien flora and fauna across hazardous terrains and unpredictable weather. With the aid of this new ship Pegasus, and her trusty A.I. companion “Fish”, she needs every ounce of cunning and courage to survive this adventure. Our hero is brought to life through bunraku puppetry – a single figure performed by multiple puppeteers. A team of physical performers use their bodies to represent the landscapes, creatures, and other characters.
REVIEWS:
” There’s undeniable artistry in this oversized bunraku puppet-driven performance, which combines the creative (and at times athletic) talents of seven on-stage performers” – Frederick Melo, Pioneer Press. Read the full review here!
Thoughts from our audience:
“This show was so beautiful and evocative- simple tools and amazing artists flawlessly executed a magical journey. I was hooked from minute one, and got way more emotionally invested than I thought I would- some of the reveals almost brought me to tears.”
“I had to stop myself from oohing and ahhing loudly during the performance. The puppeteers’ manipulation of Scout was excellent; I often got lost in the world and would forget that Scout isn’t actually a living being.”
“I adored this show. The puppetry, lighting, and script were fantastic, but it was the physical theatre component that really blew me away. So creative, beautiful and touching.”
“Brilliantly crafted and so creatively presented. This combo of puppetry abd physical theater will really have you on the edge of your seat. Visually so stunning, it captures all your senses and leaves you wanting more.”
“I kind of don’t have words. It was clean. It was inspired. It was beautiful. A MUST see must-see.”
MORE ON THE MYTHOLOGY: some specifics on the mythological terms used in the show
by company dramaturg Dylan Kostman
The Three Planets: When the gods overthrew the Titans and made the world theirs, Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, the three sons of the Titan Cronus, cast lots to determine the dominion of each god. Zeus became king of the sky, Poseidon king of everything beneath the waves, and Hades king of all that lays beneath the earth. The ground itself would be shared by all.
Zeus: God of the sky and god of kings. His mind is at times a brooding storm, and at times a flash of lightning. After Pegasus threw Bellerophon from the saddle, Zeus took the horse and had it carry his lightning bolts.
Poseidon: God of the sea and horses. He fashioned the first horses from the waves, and there are no horses greater than those bred by Poseidon. Both Bellerophon and Pegasus can claim him as a father, though accounts vary in both cases.
Hades: God of the dead, and whatever else finds its way beneath the earth. He’s not a very proactive god. What would the god of the dead want that he can’t get simply by waiting? A wife it turns out. Hades abducted the goddess of spring, Persephone, to be his bride. She is a rare bit of hope in a dreary place. A seed may be buried now, but it will pierce the surface again soon.
Prometheus: A Titan with the gift of foresight. Prometheus created humanity out of clay, and has always cared deeply about his creation. The lightning has no sympathy for what it strikes, but the god of humanity has a kind heart.
Pegasus: When Perseus killed the gorgon, Medusa, her blood spilled in the sea foam and from this mixture came a winged horse. That’s one version of the story at least. There was no finer stead and Bellerophon longed to tame him.
Ouranos: Ouranos is the vault of heaven, whose eyes are stars. He lay with the Earth and from their union sprung Titans and monsters. The greatest of his sons was Cronus, who overthrew his father with a sharp sickle. When Ouranos was wounded, he retreated from the Earth. Little else was ever heard of him. The sky of Ouranos is not filled with lightning but with stars, which must have seemed eternal to the Greeks at the time. It’s hard to imagine Zeus without his lightning, a king without his power, but no matter how his brilliance might fade, Ouranos will remain. He is the space between stars; the dark and inky black.
The Chimera: Bellerophon’s greatest feat was vanquishing the Chimera. A possible grandchild of Ouranos, she was an amalgamation of a lion, a snake, and a fire breathing goat. Pegasus flew out of range of the fire as Bellerophon pelted the creature with arrows, but her skin was thick and so Bellerophon took a spear with it’s head covered in lead. He thrust this spear into one of her mouths where the lead melted and she choked to death.
Zephyr: The west wind. One of the four chief wind gods. A warm wind that heralds spring. The winds are kept by Aeolus, who may be a god and may be a man, and once lent Zephyr to Odysseus.