Sun Spring
Sun Spring. 12’. Installation time, looped, in perpetuity.
Concept, Music & Direction by John Aylward.
Violinist, Jordan Hadrill
Assistant Director & Costumes, Alexandra Posen
Wardrobe, JoAnna Pope and Cassandra Holden
Aerial Arts Crew: Henry Wheaton, Margaret Butterfield, Ryan Freeze
Stage Manager, Isaac Rubin
Hair and Makeup, Ashe Parker
Platform, Sean Ryan
Director of Photography, Gyani Pradhan Wong Ah Sui
Lighting, Henry Vumbaca
Filmed at The Workroom, Northampton, MA.
Sun Spring is the second in a series of works for instrument and video.
Sun Spring is a video-triptych for three performers. In the video presentation, as with Moondial, it’s important to me that there is only one performer playing all parts. For me, this emphasizes the question of which performer is real and which one is a video, a reflection, or some other kind of digitally inflected embodiment (hologram, etc.)In Sun Spring, I play with reflection and synchronization in the outer two bodies and let the middle body move freely. This creates a high contrast between synchronized and fluid gestures and it allows for two kinds of developmental narratives. Questions of separateness and otherness naturally arise.
The form of the work is comprised of five seamless movements. Like Moondial, I envision the form as a kind of ritual. In addition to various mythological sources, the sense of ritual is influenced by ideas from the Renaissance and Medieval eras, which also inspire the costume and platform. Ultimately, the work comes from a consideration of the violin as a product of the Renaissance.
The piece was workshopped in September, 2025 and February 2026 and then filmed June 22 - 24, 2026. Photos are from the February workshop and June filming.
Behind the Scenes
