Ode to the Man Who Kneels
There is Standing Man and Kneeling Man. Kneeling Man is an actor. He speaks of storing up his feelings, his broken heart, of pain and of death. Standing Man shoots him. In the town called Grid, Standing Man meets Dashing Man, whom he pays to make a Daguerreotype of him and to gather riders. When the riders don’t come on time, Standing Man kills Dashing Man. Standing Man courts Waiting Woman. He tells her he has raped, but they choose each other and make a life. Then a younger woman, Juny, comes to Grid to claim her father’s land. Waiting Woman advises Juny and pleads with her to stay and keep her company. Juny takes a walk and finds Standing Man. They make love, and a life together; he builds her a citadel. Waiting Woman enters from the sky, leading the Great Hunt, followed by Woden’s riders. She takes Juny to the sky. Standing Man is left alone.
CREDITS

Written and directed by Richard Maxwell

Standing Man: Jim Fletcher
Kneeling Man: Greg Mehrten
Waiting Woman: Anna Kohler
Dashing Man: Brian Mendes
Juny: Emily McDonnell

Musicians: Scott Sherratt, Richard Maxwell

Set and Lights: Sascha van Riel
Costumes: Tory Vazquez
Company Manager: Nicholas Elliott
Dramaturge: Tom King
Wardrobe Mistress: Petra Hjortsberg

Production History

Festival Belluard Bollwerk Festival, Fribourg 2007
The Performing Garage, New York 2007
Project Arts Centre, Dublin 2008
Lókal Festival, Reykjavik 2008
Arsenic, Lausanne 2008
Théâtre du Grütli, Geneva 2008
Frysk Festival, Leeuwarden 2008
Groningen City Theater, 2008
Kampnagel, Hamburg 2009
Brut, Vienna 2009
Santarcangelo Festival, 2009
Festival Internacional de Teatro de São José do Rio Preto, 2010

Press

Land of the Big Sky And The Deep Inner Void, The New York Times, 2007
Ode to the Man who Kneels, Time Out New York, 2007
In Search of Lost Times, The New Yorker, 2007

Support

A production of Festival Belluard Bollwerk International, in co-production with Arsenic, Auawirleben, Buda Kunstencentrum, Théâtre du Grütli and Kunstencentrum Vooruit. It was made possible thanks to a contribution of Canton Fribourg. New York production partner: Piece by Piece Productions.