[photo credit: Sierra Madre Playhouse]
The screenings mark the world premiere of a score written and conducted by composer George Sarah for string quartet, vocalists and electronics, according to the Playhouse and a July 6 announcement in BroadwayWorld. Sierra Madre sits directly east of Pasadena and Altadena — the city’s two public schools are part of the Pasadena Unified School District — putting the 99-seat theater within a short drive of both communities.
“Battleship Potemkin,” directed by Sergei Eisenstein, dramatizes a 1905 uprising aboard the Russian battleship Potemkin and is known for its montage editing, including the “Odessa Steps” sequence. The film has been paired with numerous scores over the past century, including a 2004 soundtrack by the Pet Shop Boys performed with the Dresden Symphonic Orchestra.
The Playhouse describes the ensemble as a “vocal quintet” and a “five-voice vocal ensemble,” but its own performer list names only four singers: soprano Jenna Hansen, mezzo-soprano Anna Caplan, and tenors George Sterne and Sean McDermott — a discrepancy in the source material that remains unresolved. The full roster, per the Playhouse, is Sarah on synthesizers and electronics; Hansen; Caplan; Sterne; McDermott; Kaija Hansen on violin and viola; Katie Kim on violin; and cellists Carolyn Regula and Paul Hyun.
Sierra Madre Playhouse operates inside a building on Main Street dating to 1910, when it housed a furniture store before becoming a movie house in the 1920s, according to Pasadena Magazine and the theater’s own history. It was later downsized to 99 seats to qualify under Actors’ Equity’s small-theater plan, according to the Los Angeles Theatres historical archive. The venue is led by Artistic and Executive Director Matt Cook.
Tickets for the Aug. 14 and 15 performances are $30, and information is available by calling (626) 355-4318 or visiting sierramadreplayhouse.org, according to the Playhouse, which is located at 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, CA 91024.
Sarah’s Eisenstein score follows a similar commission he wrote for Carl Dreyer’s 1928 film “The Passion of Joan of Arc,” performed at Grand Performances in downtown Los Angeles, according to his artist biography.
