SWARM presents musical and theatrical shows of invented instruments, experimental world music and intense physical choreography. The performers jump and spin about the stage twirling large-scale industrial drum sculptures. They evoke primal rhythms from the drums and ethereal soundscapes from a wide range of musical sculptures. The mesmerizing contemporary collage of music, movement and mass, thrills audiences of all ages.
Visual artist and musician, Bill Wallace, is the founder and director of SWARM. He designs and constructs all the instruments which include over 100 drum sculptures, longstrings, marimbas, water gongs, vacuum whirligigs, tuned artillery shells, musical body costumes, and parachute projection screens. Principal composers, Curtis Mathewson and Bill Wallace collaborate with SWARM members as well as other local and international dancers, drummers and musicians to create the visceral theatrics of SWARM. The one-of-a-kind instruments, the movements they invoke and the creative collaboration of the SWARM troupe propels percussion theatre to new heights.
SWARM offers a variety of shows:
School Show: 60 minute show with Q&A. This is a humorous fun-filled show where performers spin the drums around the stage, play them with plungers, and throw them back and forth with bungee cords. A water filled bathtub on wheels creates a slap-stick pitch-shifting opus of water, stainless steel pots and pans & rubber duckies. Recycled rubber exhaust tubes and a pentatonically tuned marimba sculpture add a melodic counterpoint to the shows intensity. The unique choreography exemplifies the advantages of teamwork and shows a creative approach to physical fitness. The instruments expose children to a unique use of recycled materials and the possibilities of thinking "outside the box". A comprehensive Study Guide is provided which outlines educational projects in Music, Drama, Visual Arts and Environmental Studies.
Festival Show: 45-60 minute show. This is a high-energy acoustic show for all ages. It features the Marimbas, Xylophones and tuned Exhaust Tubes from the school show plus more of the hardcore action-drumming choreography that SWARM is famous for. The wheeled instruments allow the stage to be set up and torn down in less than five minutes. The passionate performers create a show that is fun and exhilarating for the kids, has disciplined choreography and detailed crafmanship to appeal to grandparents, and is high-octane and wild enough for teenagers.
Theatrical Show: 60 or 90 minute show plus intermission. This powerful action-packed show recontexualizes many of the elements from the other shows plus many unique instruments and pieces which due to their scale and complexity are only suitable for a theatrical setting. There is a giant drum kit clustered with stainless drums, midi-triggers and orbiting cymbals that provide the eletro-acoustic backbone of the second half of the show. Pendulum longstrings and a bass, pivot and spin around the stage in an architectonic ballet of futuristic structures. Vacuum bagpipe-whirligig costumes create a doppler drone effect combined with gas mask accordions. Interactive video is woven throughout the entire show and combine with shadows of the performers that are cast onto the 16' round parachute screen. This show is a multimedia extravaganza unlike any other on the planet.
Club Show: any length. This show is tailored for smaller venues and is more dance orientated. This show features many of the melodic instruments, video projection and electronic elements of the theatrical show but limits the choreography to conform to a smaller stage. The show is still very physical, with jumps, kicks and spins but excludes all the larger instrument movements and transitions. For this show, we play with a predominately stationary setup like a regular band. By focusing on the music and maintaining a driving dance groove it is much more practical to collaborate with other guest musicians, DJs and artists.
SWARM Workshops: We offer a unique hands-on experience full of fun, movement and music. The workshops are tailored to suit the ages of the participants from elementary schools up to master classes. We teach people some of the basic rhythms and movements from the SWARM show culminating in everyone dancing and drumming around in unison. One of our most exciting workshops is a giant drum circle for people of all ages where we play a game of call-and-response inter-woven with looping grooves. The participants learn to mimic the many rhythms, vocal calls and crazy physical gestures of the lead drummer. The more advanced members of the drum circle get an opportunity to lead the drum circle, building confidence and dismantling the hyarchy of the teacher-pupil relationship. The workshops naturally reinforce the value of teamwork and encourages community bonding through a simple fun structure of collaborative group activity that encourage's individual spontaneity.
SWARM will tailor their performance to meet your personal needs, and is also ideal for:
Festivals & Outdoor events, Galas, Conferences, Business Meetings, Product Launches, Commercials, Movies, TV etc.
