Soon after
Around the age of twenty I joined Den Norske Ballett in Oslo, Norway, where I was privileged to dance alongside great stars like the iconic Rudolf Nureyev and the company’s director/dancer Sonia Arova. While with the company I was also asked to design the set and costumes for the company’s version of George Balanchine’s 'Symphony in C' in which I was also dancing at the time - I remember very clearly that, when we took that ballet to Germany, we received twenty-one curtain calls on our opening night. I
remember too, we had such fun on that trip because the whole company went by ship, and yours truly hysterically tangoed around the oscillating decks with dear Kjersti Alveberg.
It was while I was with the Norwegian Ballet that I got the chance to create the character of Toulouse Lautrec for my very first corporate event and found myself cast as an actor-dancer for the Norsk Rikskringkasting in their TV production of 'The Hottentots'.
As dancers were expected to do their own makeup, I believe this is where my love of character makeup was born.
Time to relocate once again
This time across the Atlantic Ocean to Canada.
First came a very barmy summer, in the open air, on the side of Lake Ontario. We were playing native Canadians and cowboys and also frolicking in period tail suits and ball gowns thru torrential thunderstorms in 'The Canadian Grandstand Show'.
Then directly on to Celia Franca’s The National Ballet of Canada, where I got the chance to tour both Canada and the United States in their major repertoire of legendary ballets.
The Age of Aquarius – Let the sunshine In!
I returned to the UK and my career took yet another turn.
So this time, I was whisked out of the UK and across the British Channel to perform in the land of fabulous cheeses and clogs – Amsterdam, Holland.
I acquired an actor/singer role as a Tribe member and cover for Woof in the rock musical 'Hair' directed by Victor Spinetti. It was in our show that Oliver Tobias and Bill Van Dyke played the role of Berger and Jan Ackerman, the legendary guitarist, played with Thijs van Leer with our resident band ‘Focus’.
At the end of my run in ‘Hair’, I stayed in Amsterdam and I was fortunate enough to get the job as costume, makeup designer and choreographer for Dutch Television’s production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’; Ramses Shaffy played Pharaoh and Bill Van Dyke played Joseph.
We were one of the first TV productions to use blue screen (Now progressed to green screen.) effects, and the show won First Prize in Baden Baden at the German Television Festival.
Moreover, I soon secured a job with the director-actor Kjinn ter Brack to play the lead role in his TV film 'Genius Genius'. The film involved a live scene in the presence of the great Spanish surrealist artist Salvador Dali.
Coincidentally, later in my career, yours truly impersonated Dali at a corporate event held at the Dorchester Hotel in London; I was representing the Hotel Le Meurice – Paris. Apparently, Le Meurice was Dali’s home-from-home.
As my world diversified, I travelled back to London once more
I taught movement to the senior students at the renowned Arts Education School in London UK.
I went on to choreograph and direct a variety of productions including Geoffrey Chaucer's 'The Canterbury Tales' for Leeds Play House UK, 'Ebony' at the Oval House, 'Reflections' for Ballet Who at the ICA.
Then worked on my choreography, writing and direction with Françoise Balsiger in Switzerland, 'The Oddity' at the New End Theatre in London and 'Cloud Flowers' a piece for Beryl Grey’s London Festival Ballet (aka English National Ballet).
Nomadically back to Norway!
I choreographed and designed my work with music devised by, BBC’s 'Dr Who' electronic composer, Laurie Scott Baker. This was a dance drama entitled 'Black and White Make Grey' with simultaneous text in English, German, and Norwegian.
We accompanying this work with a piece entitled 'Superfly'. Studio Oscar initially performed these at Club 7. We then moved it on to the Nationaltheatret studio in Oslo. This was very well received by the national press who said that it was “Comparable to Fellini”. Due to these reviews, we implemented a nationwide televised version.
I returned to Norway yet again, much later in my career, to play a Hippy Therapist for a Norske Tipping TV advertising campaign.
I was now ready for career advancement!
While still dabbling in costume design, on projects such as Bettina Jonic’s productions of 'Ghost Games' and 'Hamlet' at the Royal Opera House Studio, I made the major decision to move away from costume, and develop further my vocal skills.
I studied initially with The Royal Academy’s Hazel Wood. At that confidence-boosting juncture, I continued my studies with Andrew Field, the highly experienced tenor Adrian de Peyer and further with my friend Bettina Jonic.
At this point in my career, I found myself gaining a further understanding of space and movement through the mime and mask classes I attended taught by Mme Claude Chagrin.
She is well-known for her choreographic skills in the stage productions of 'Equus', 'The Royal Hunt of the Sun' and 'Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead'. And, for an added bit of light relief, I also took classes in fabulous Flamenco dance - Just love wearing those boots!
“Nature or Nurture”
My Inspiration.
Then came my total fascination with behavioural development and body language – Nature and/or Nurture?
For this reason, it is the underlying subtext that becomes my muse rather than the obvious narrative/story-line; given any precise situation, an individual will react entirely differently from another; whether they linger in their primary feelings or fall victim to their secondary feelings - these can regulate their articulation, choice of vocabulary, body language etc..
As Creative Catalyst, in tandem with the performing artistes, I/we examine the subject matter, character, the facets of nature and/or nurture that guide the topic, the circumstance, the message that we wish to emphasize and so on and so forth. Then we formulate striking stylized line and movement – Choreography, Atmosphere and Magic!
CONTEMPORARY TONE POEMS - IMMERSIVE DRAMA IN SOUND!
Though my music-soundscapes could be construed as pictorial, almost cinematic, their immersive methodology with embedded triggers yields a fair amount of enigmatic ambiguity. This is intended as a motivation for the imaginings of the individual to construct a scenario of their own volition.
I am not the story teller
- this artistry is left securely in the hands of the audience.
To add to the aforementioned.
These I create, electro-acoustically, by means of the genres of Words, Foley, Ambient Sounds, Vocals and Instrumentals – forming emblematic and shadowy locations for the spectator's mind's eye to colonize, and thereafter investigate the intrinsic Comedy and Tragedy of each piece - A very personal dramatization. .
To add even more to that.
I guess one could say that my works risk breaking many traditional academic rubrics and archetypical expectations of both the spoken word and music genres in general.
Even more.
As a result of my interest in Nature or Nurture, my creative activities might be activated by existentialism, philosophy and/or physiology; however, I think, for the time being, I would like to remain noncommittal regarding these precise assumptions.
Just a pinch of ego right here.
My non-linear work is investigative and thematically/subject based by nature; therefore, I take great pride in creating the majority of sounds, music & vocals, effects, voices and so on, myself. These I create, from scratch, for each distinct piece.
They vary in length - From just a few minutes to sixty minutes.
Some are created as single pieces and some serialised rather like movements in a symphony.
I am flexible as to how they can be presented: Performance for dancer-actors etc, and/or as installations, and/or for listening in a blacked out spaces, and/or in conjunction with video.
They can be presented either in theatres, open spaces, art galleries or in a variety of site specific venues. ....
(Please note that, at this moment in time, I have chosen to limit my immersive sound projects to live performance only.
Therefore, I have not offered any of its content to the internet for its scrutiny. Nonetheless, should you be interested in listening to one or more of my creations, please be kind enough to contact me and, at that point, I would be more than happy to give you a private audience.)
© All other intellectual property is held by Jevon Antoni-Jay at: https://copyrighthouse.org
“At This Moment - Pioneers do not seek approval"
So, here we are in 'Now Time'.
I guess there has never been a time when I have not been burning the midnight oil being creative in one way or another.
At present -
I continue to spend my days writing and recording non-linear tone poems and word-based performance art. As I repeat myself here, these works are intended as installations, pop-up happenings, immersive contemplative listening, or as the accompaniment to dance-drama pieces either on film, video or staged live in an assortment of venues.
And, when time permits -
I perform or work as a commercial and fine art model.
And, if there is any time left over -
I continue with my painting and observations through the lens of a my camera.
Please Note: © All my intellectual property is held in the name of
Jevon Antoni-Jay at https://copyrighthouse.org
Is life a Comedy or a Tragedy?
Though I truly believe one should follow a highly professional work ethic at all times, I never take myself too seriously - why would I? I am not the centre of the universe and, after all, I don't know everything do I? Thus, I also believe one should keep a great sense of humour at all times – so, why not join me and let’s have a good laugh?!!!!!
WHY NOT COLLABORATE WITH ME!
Check out my latest project on the UNSCENE CHIMERA website.
Maybe you are -
A Dance Producer? Performing Artiste? Art Installation Space? Corporate Advertiser? Dance Company? Gallery? ................ or even An Angel?.......
There too, you will find out more on my Work Ethos and Mission Statement.
Quotes from distinguished reviewers
Ref: My performace in 'Hair'.
'Ik kan doen wat ik wil - I can do what I will.'
"One of the most important people in the production of ‘Hair’… .. . he is like a controlled but wild dancer; his life is like that too .... .. he draws, writes, designs, cooks and does things a normal person wouldn’t think of doing…… "
- Het Parool, Amsterdam, Holland.
Ref: My choreographic directing.
"Directing commended.”
– Clive Barns in the Times Newspaper, UK
“A vividly dramatic mixed-media experience, brilliantly designed and directed, with rhythm and poetry accompaniment.”
– Alexander Bland in the Observer Newspaper., UK
"I just didn't know whether to laugh or cry."
- Audience member
“Fantastic new dance work – exciting and Felliniesque.”
– Lisi Caren in the Norske Dagbladet, Norway.
