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"A profound synthesis of visual art, percussion, voice, mask, movement, philosophy, religion and culture. Amanta Scott and Leading Tone's captivating performance/exhibition is an offering of intricate percussion, haunting vocalizations and dazzling visuals.
Dragon Tango is inspirational."
Judi Schwartz, Art Gallery Director/ Curator:
Justina M. Barnicke Gallery
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Exhibitions/Performances
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1998/99
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Royal Ontario Museum, Canada |
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1998
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Singapore International Arts Festival
Edmonton Art Gallery, Alberta, Canada |
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1997
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Market Hall, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada
Academy Theatre, Lindsay, Ontario, Canada |
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1996
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Canadian Embassy in Tokyo, Japan
Hijikawa Wind Museum, Shikoku, Japan
Hino Hara Mura regional tour, Tokyo, Japan |
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Dragon Tango is a syncretic art exhibition with performance featuring two vibrantly colourful dragon sound sculptures...
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"Hijikawa"
an eastern dragon:
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"Harlech"
a western dragon:
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"An amazing and fluid production..."
"Quite unlike anything you will ever have seen..."
"It leaves you contemplating some of the deeper issues of
environmental responsibility and cultural diversity."
Lindsay Sharpe, Executive Director, Royal Ontario Museum, Canada
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Mixing the mysticism of the east with the mythology of the west...
...Dragon Tango offers that rare opportunity for a leap of the imagination:
a chance to see and touch "a real live dragon"
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Two magical spirits weave a spell upon dragons battling for control of the world.
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A dramatic tango of peace and passion, harmony and discord.
Marvel at the wondrous sight of two spectacular dragons towering above
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Expect to be challenged. Expect to question, marvel, ponder and wonder.
Tremble with anticipation, fear and delight during outlandish performances.
Dragon Tango is like nothing you have ever seen before:
a cutting edge art experience
for family audiences of diverse cultural backgrounds and all ages.
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Excerpts from the Comment Book:
"A fabulous and intriguing show on all levels. Beautiful art, beautiful storytelling and an enhancing, enriching and educational experience for adults, parents and children." M. Koles
"Extremely interesting, imaginative and wonderfully illusionary.
A complex array of sight, sounds and textures." Bettina Share
"It was neat, especially when the dragon moved!" Christina McGregor
"Fantastic performance. Coming from an Eastern country and living in a Western country
it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience to see it expressed through 'syncretic art'." J. N.: Australia
"All the various art forms combine to fill the senses
and send all our sensual/ intellectual/ spiritual neurons synapsing wildly!" Ariana: Belfast
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Dragon Tango is spectacular, interactive
and designed for exhibition in art galleries and museums
with optional weekend and evening performances for general public and daily performances for school tours;
Dragon Tango offers a fantastic performance experience
for theatres and festivals!
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Sculpture
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The dragon sound sculptures were created entirely out of found objects
culled from rubbish heaps and recycle centres in Japan and Canada.
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"The two enormous dragon sound sculptures are remarkable.
. . . they left our audiences mesmerized."
"The performance, which integrates sound sculpture, percussion,
voice, movement and mask, is interesting and sophisticated,
blurring the boundaries between visual art, music and theatre. "
"Dragon Tango added a new and stimulating element
to the ROM's public programs."
Margo Welch, Director of Exhibits & Design, Royal Ontario Museum
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The breast of the Eastern dragon is created from 165 stainless steel plates,
in his belly growls an enormous meat grinder cone;
 
bicycle rims and rice pots form the vertebrae of this dragon
and 30 stainless steel mixing bowls adorn his arms.
Intimately acquainted with water and air, the spine of the Eastern dragon
is formed by four windsurfer wishbones upon which hang a beautiful array of bells,
previously the inner-bowls of rice-cookers.
The western dragon’s silver mane is a diverse collection of knives, forks, spoons and chains
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Her skull: three bicycle baskets wrapped in fur.
Her breath is noxious as her jaw was once a mud-caked motorcycle fender, her venomous tongue; a necktie.
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. . . from the Comment Book:
"The visual aspects are wonderful.
I especially like the neck (spoons, knives, forks) on the Western Dragon." Catherine Hoock
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With a taste for fine wine her nostrils originate from sake goblets, her gleaming truck mirror eyes glitter with visions of past and present. Her enormous bat-like wings were once a satellite dish; and antiquated record-turntables grace her undulating tail, tipped with pitch-forks.
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Created entirely out of found objects culled from rubbish heaps and recycle centres, the dragon's vast arching wings derive from a satellite dish. Bicycle wheel rims, sauce pans, pot-lids, heavy cast metal pots reincarnate into sonorous bells and drums.
Check out the Dragon Bones
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Interaction
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Excerpts from the Comment Book:
"A fascinating presentation! The explanations of the east meeting west was extremely interesting and I would like to have heard more. I think even the youngest children understood much of the symbolism." J. Aldershot
"The show was amazing. I like the idea of giving your own meaning. It feels like you have a part in it.
It also allows for some original ideas."
M. Rose
"Superb performance. Highly enjoyable.
The performers' talk was surprisingly worthwhile and enlightening. Excellent!" D. Reynolds
Audiences enjoy identifying each object used in the creation of the sound sculpture. What made those fabulous wings? . . . a giant satellite dish!
   
Gnarled talons? farm machinery! Look closely and you will find . . . woks, windsurfer wishbones, antique record turntables, salad plates, and much, much more. The artists may also provide mallets (drum sticks) so that people may make music upon the sculptures themselves.
    
These activities are very popular with audiences of all ages.
. . . from the Comment Book:
"We enjoyed the energy of the performance, the ingenuity of the sculptures and the interesting hands-on opportunities to play a dragon." A. Weibster
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Concept
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Dragons touch something in everyone. Lurking in the depths of our collective imagination dragons trigger our primal and innermost feelings. Since time immemorial dragons have haunted the dreams and visions of people of all cultures.
Creatures of mystery, alternately benevolent and malevolent, dragons embody universal truths which reverberate in the soul. Understanding the dragon can enhance one's life and provide a vehicle for global understanding, mutual evolution and care for our environment.
. . . from the Comment Book:
"Even though I'm only 13, I really enjoyed this. The evil dragon is the coolest!" Liam
"Nice melding of eastern & western ideology; environmental vs/ worldly concerns;
and personal interpretation vs/ worldly legends. Great work. More! More! More!" M. Rose
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Technical Info
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Durations
Performance: forty-five (45) minutes
Interaction sessions: fifteen – thirty (15 – 30) minutes, depending on venue requirements
Exhibition/ Performance Space Requirements
minimum floor area of 800 sq. feet (40 feet x 20 feet) or 75 sq. metres (12.2 metres x 6.1 metres );
minimum ceiling height of 3.66 metres (12 feet)
Dragon Sculpture dimensions
each dragon sound sculpture requires a floor area of approximately 36 square metres (400 square feet)
Western Dragon
Height: 3.66 metres (12 feet )
Length: 6 metres (20 feet)
Width: 6 metres (20 feet)
Eastern Dragon
Height: 3.6 metres (12 feet )
Length: 6 metres (20 feet)
Width: 6 metres (20 feet)
Installation and Dismantle
The exhibition is installed, assembled and dismantled by the artists.
Installation requires two days
Dismantling requires one day
Dragon Crate Dimensions
1.62 metres height (64 inches)
3.17 metres length (125 inches)
2.23 metres width (88 inches)
Total Weight: 750 kg
Total Volume Weight (for air shipment): 1924 kg
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overview of dragon sound sculptures
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Artists
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Critically acclaimed as "cutting edge," "ground breaking" and "strikingly innovative" Amanta Scott has exhibited and performed extensively in art galleries, museums, theatres, dance, concert venues and festivals throughout Asia and North America.
Since 1985 Amanta has been exploring the contemporary relevance and power of universal mythological symbols through Syncretic Art works integrating visual arts, music, theatre, movement, multi-media, mythology and contemporary archaeology.
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© 2000 - 2006 Leading Tone Arts Productions Inc.
Revised: Fri, Jan 27, 2006
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