15 episodios
Icons/Idols: Irene The Byzantine Choral Project
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- Ficción
The unlikely story of a child bride who ascends to the heart of Byzantine power. Harboring a treasonous secret that marks her as the enemy of her husband and son, Irene must finally choose her side in the iconoclastic wars. With a haunting score inspired by Byzantine Chant, and featuring the voices of ten women and non-binary performers, ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE is a sweeping story of ambition, sacrifice, and the struggle to make something new out of a shattered world. A twelve-episode musical audio narrative by the Byzantine Choral Project. // Written by Helen Banner. Composed by Grace Oberhofer. Featuring Hilary Asare, Iris Beaumier, Isabella Dawis, Hannah Eakin, Julia Izumi, Grace Oberhofer, Lukas Papenfusscline, Shanta Parasuraman, Yael Shavitt and Kay Weber. Music Direction by Robert Frost. Audio Engineering by Nathan Leigh. Sound Design by Grace Oberhofer and Nathan Leigh. Featured Foley Artist Nicole Orabona. Produced by Emily Caffery. // ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was adapted from a stage play to a podcast in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and recorded under a SAG-AFTRA Collective Bargaining Agreement. Its development has received support from OPERA America, New York Council on the Arts, The New Ohio/IRT Archive Residency, The Tank, and New Georges. An excerpt of ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was shared with live audiences at New Ohio Theatre in May 2021 in the immersive sound installation ICONS/IDOLS: IN THE PURPLE ROOM. byzantinechoralproject.com // If you enjoy this podcast, you can support our work with a tax-deductible donation to the Byzantine Choral Project: byzantinechoralproject.com/donate
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E01 - Paint Me
A teenage Irene prepares to sail to Constantinople with her best friend Megaris to present herself as the perfect bride for the Caesar Leo, son of the icon-hating Emperor, but can’t bear to leave behind her mother’s icon. Meanwhile, Leo tries to please his dying father under the shadow of his eunuch Staurakios’ warnings that war is coming. // ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was written by Helen Banner and composed by Grace Oberhofer. Featuring Hilary Asare (Narrator), Iris Beaumier (Cyra), Isabella Dawis (Constantine VI), Hannah Eakin (Constantine V), Julia Izumi (Court), Grace Oberhofer (Court), Lukas Papenfusscline (Staurakios), Shanta Parasuraman (Megaris), Yael Shavitt (Leo) and Kay Weber (Irene). Music direction by Robert Frost. Audio engineering by Nathan Leigh. Sound design by Grace Oberhofer and Nathan Leigh. Featured foley artist Nicole Orabona. Produced by Emily Caffery. Learn more about the Byzantine Choral Project at www.byzantinechoralproject.com/podcast. // If you enjoyed this episode, you can support our work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Byzantine Choral Project at byzantinechoralproject.com/donate. Thank you for listening!
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E02 - Bride Show
Staurakios organizes a Bride Show to find a wife for Leo, but the Emperor is too sick to follow Staurakios’ plans. Irene is unexpectedly elevated, but makes an enemy out of her competitor Cyra and her powerful iconoclastic brothers. // ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was written by Helen Banner and composed by Grace Oberhofer. Featuring Hilary Asare (Narrator), Iris Beaumier (Cyra), Isabella Dawis (Constantine VI), Hannah Eakin (Constantine V), Julia Izumi (Court), Grace Oberhofer (Court), Lukas Papenfusscline (Staurakios), Shanta Parasuraman (Megaris), Yael Shavitt (Leo) and Kay Weber (Irene). Music direction by Robert Frost. Audio engineering by Nathan Leigh. Sound design by Grace Oberhofer and Nathan Leigh. Featured foley artist Nicole Orabona. Produced by Emily Caffery. Learn more about the Byzantine Choral Project at www.byzantinechoralproject.com/podcast. // If you enjoyed this episode, you can support our work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Byzantine Choral Project at byzantinechoralproject.com/donate. Thank you for listening!
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E03 - Love All Your Ladies
A newly-crowned Irene struggles to impose her will on her aristocratic ladies, but makes a new friend in the eunuch Staurakios. The Emperor grows angry at foolish words spoken by Megaris, but is mollified by some unexpected news. // ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was written by Helen Banner and composed by Grace Oberhofer. Featuring Hilary Asare (Narrator), Iris Beaumier (Cyra), Isabella Dawis (Constantine VI), Hannah Eakin (Constantine V), Julia Izumi (Court), Grace Oberhofer (Court), Lukas Papenfusscline (Staurakios), Shanta Parasuraman (Megaris), Yael Shavitt (Leo) and Kay Weber (Irene). Music direction by Robert Frost. Audio engineering by Nathan Leigh. Sound design by Grace Oberhofer and Nathan Leigh. Featured foley artist Nicole Orabona. Produced by Emily Caffery. Learn more about the Byzantine Choral Project at www.byzantinechoralproject.com/podcast. // If you enjoyed this episode, you can support our work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Byzantine Choral Project at byzantinechoralproject.com/donate. Thank you for listening!
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E04 - The Stranger
A scared Irene is taken to the crowded Purple Room to give birth to her son in front of the whole court. Cyra makes a shocking discovery that reignites her hostility towards her mistress. // ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was written by Helen Banner and composed by Grace Oberhofer. Featuring Hilary Asare (Narrator), Iris Beaumier (Cyra), Isabella Dawis (Constantine VI), Hannah Eakin (Constantine V), Julia Izumi (Court), Grace Oberhofer (Court), Lukas Papenfusscline (Staurakios), Shanta Parasuraman (Megaris), Yael Shavitt (Leo) and Kay Weber (Irene). Music direction by Robert Frost. Audio engineering by Nathan Leigh. Sound design by Grace Oberhofer and Nathan Leigh. Featured foley artist Nicole Orabona. Produced by Emily Caffery. Learn more about the Byzantine Choral Project at www.byzantinechoralproject.com/podcast. // If you enjoyed this episode, you can support our work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Byzantine Choral Project at byzantinechoralproject.com/donate. Thank you for listening!
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E05 - Peek-a-Boo
Five years on, a sick Irene and Leo care for their son, Constantine VI, while trying to resist the quickening preparations for war. As the court splits into iconophiles and iconoclasts, Staurakios tries to contain the chaos, whilst Cyra reveals Irene's secret to an unexpectedly hostile audience. // ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was written by Helen Banner and composed by Grace Oberhofer. Featuring Hilary Asare (Narrator), Iris Beaumier (Cyra), Isabella Dawis (Constantine VI), Hannah Eakin (Constantine V), Julia Izumi (Court), Grace Oberhofer (Court), Lukas Papenfusscline (Staurakios), Shanta Parasuraman (Megaris), Yael Shavitt (Leo) and Kay Weber (Irene). Music direction by Robert Frost. Audio engineering by Nathan Leigh. Sound design by Grace Oberhofer and Nathan Leigh. Featured foley artist Nicole Orabona. Produced by Emily Caffery. Learn more about the Byzantine Choral Project at www.byzantinechoralproject.com/podcast. // If you enjoyed this episode, you can support our work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Byzantine Choral Project at byzantinechoralproject.com/donate. Thank you for listening!
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E06 - Two Flocks of Birds
The Old Emperor is dead and Leo and Irene must make every rival swear loyalty to them as the new rulers. Cyra continues her quest to prove that Irene has a forbidden icon, while Staurakios warns Leo about being too accommodating to icon lovers. // ICONS/IDOLS: IRENE was written by Helen Banner and composed by Grace Oberhofer. Featuring Hilary Asare (Narrator), Iris Beaumier (Cyra), Isabella Dawis (Constantine VI), Hannah Eakin (Constantine V), Julia Izumi (Court), Grace Oberhofer (Court), Lukas Papenfusscline (Staurakios), Shanta Parasuraman (Megaris), Yael Shavitt (Leo) and Kay Weber (Irene). Music direction by Robert Frost. Audio engineering by Nathan Leigh. Sound design by Grace Oberhofer and Nathan Leigh. Featured foley artist Nicole Orabona. Produced by Emily Caffery. Learn more about the Byzantine Choral Project at www.byzantinechoralproject.com/podcast. // If you enjoyed this episode, you can support our work by making a tax-deductible donation to the Byzantine Choral Project at byzantinechoralproject.com/donate. Thank you for listening!