Death Takes a "Sentimental Journey"

Posted by photographer Tamara Staples, whose photos are used in Still Life-

Using the dark rich palette of the 15th century Flemish painters, "Sentimental Journey" is a series of photographic still lives portrays rotting fruit, dead animals in repose and ephemera like candle smoke. These are the symbols of the Vanitas painters, whose opulent assemblages served to remind the viewer of the fleeting quality of life and all its entertainments and accomplishments. In my work, these objects embody my reckoning with the passing of my own youth, a passage of death and rebirth that contemporary culture by and large fails to recognize or celebrate.

The unabashed gaze at death in this series serves as a visual counterpoint to the death-denying, youth-worshipping culture that pours into our consciousness from the popular culture: advertising fetishizes youth, plastic surgery creates artificial ingenues from those who should be doyennes, and medical procedures prolong life and rob death of its dignity. While around me the thrust is to cling to the blossom of life, I am interested in the fruit, the decay of the fruit, which ultimately yields a new seed.

My work approaches death and decay with a gentle awe as well as the mournful loss evoked by even the kindest change. In this sense, the animal portraits among these pictures harken back to Victorian Memorial portraits, where a loved one was often photographed in the coffin. To the modern, death denying eye, these death portraits can appear grotesque; but to the 19th century eye, they represented the loved one in a state of grace, having gone on to a better world. Thus by portraying the death of innocent woodland creatures, I mean to suggest the cusp of a new phase of development, a maturity beyond the naivete of youth.

I hope that by portraying death as a peaceful finality and decay as irrevocable yet sensuous, that these images invite the viewer to contemplate mortality, loss of youth, and all the inevitable change that life brings with a sense of acceptance and serenity.

Click here to view the full series of photographs, under the tab "Personal."

For the Birds!

Posted by J. Michael Grey, Head Treasurer at The Lucille Lortel Theatre-

A woman who has tickets to see Still Life just saw the photo of the deceased bird on the theater marquee and came into the box office in a panic - wanting to make sure that there were no real birds in the show. I told her, "Only one, but they kill it in the first scene." She laughed. (Glad she could at least tell I was joking.)

Week Four

Posted by Still Life actor Ian Kahn--

We’re now in the fourth week of rehearsals for Still Life… I always find this period to be an interesting one, and in some ways, the most fun and fruitful part of the rehearsal process. We've got the whole show blocked, and we're doing full runs of the play in the afternoons. It is the time where we can all start to get an idea of the piece as a whole, and where each of our characters fit into it. Can be tricky, too, though. You can get your hands around a scene or a moment, and you feel like you’ve really "got it", and then the next time through it just seems to slip away. Reconnect with your partner, look to your director, and get back on that horse. That's the advice I was given and I try to keep in mind.

I am feeling really fortunate to be working with this company of actors, this director, playwright, stage management, and MCC. We are up here swinging with everything we’ve got. Here's hoping we knock it out of the park like Derek Jeter. Or at least a double off the wall.

Editor’s note: Ian has had many roles you may recognize him from – including major roles on ABC's The Unusuals and Dawson’s Creek and – although he’s now a married man – a number of rolls in the hay with some top-shelf leading ladies, including Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw – Check it out ...