multimedia

Become a House (2019)

Musical theater piece for three vocalists-dancers and seven musicians. 

Become a House takes a humorous and absurd approach to reflecting on the potential toxicity of heteronormative relationships. The "protagonist" exists as multiple bodies that encircle themselves as well as disperse in search for individuality within the confines of an out of balance relationship. Although the other person in this hypothetical relationship does not appear physically, the words are entirely from their perspective. By making the actions empowering and the words petty demands, my hope is to share a female's perspective as a continuum of contradicting phenomena that culminate in a wild and boundless world of possibilities.

a bird in its chest (2022)

a bird in its chest is a collaborative piece for large ensemble and three aerialists created by drummer-composer, Lesley Mok and cellist-composer, Aliya Ultan. 

a bird in its chest is a reflection on love: young, unrequited, unconditional, enduring, and self-love. Shaped by ideas of supernatural grace, phantom wishes, ephemeral passions, and crazed disillusionment, this collaboration has emerged out of a desire to understand the expansiveness of love beyond its familiar expressions. 

RESIDUUM (2023)

Performance piece for cellist and trash. 

RESIDUUM is an experimental short film created by Aliya Ultan for cellist/improviser, Katinka Kleijn. The piece presents environments of epic proportions, asking a cellist to confront exceedingly large amounts of trash in real-time. The encounter depicts a reality not far from our own in a fascinatingly bizarre audiovisual fusion of mortal and immortal matter. RESIDUUM at first glance is a call for action as trash raises issues of life, class, space, and sustainability. Yet, due to the way in which the trash forms dresses, beds, and storms around the cellist throughout, RESIDUUM co-constructs a narrative with its viewer that can extend far beyond the sociopolitical, tugging at the heartstrings of a truly interpersonal issue of our present and future.

Nova (2018)

Nova is a narrative contemporary circus show incorporating aerials, dance, physical comedy, acrobatics, original music, and cinematography to convey the story of a young girl as she passes into the world of sleep. This multimedia piece playfully investigates notions of childhood, companionship, metamorphosis, and loss.

Created by acrobat-dancer, Gabrielle Teddy Ment and composer-performer, Aliya Ultan.