Michael McQuilken

Michael McQuilken
Born
Beaverton, Oregon, USA
EducationYale School of Drama
OccupationsDirector, filmmaker, musician, composer, sound designer
Notable workMachine Makes Man
SpouseAdina Verson[1][2]
Children1

Michael McQuilken is an American theater and opera director, filmmaker, and musician.

Early life

Born and raised in Beaverton, Oregon, McQuilken moved to Seattle, Washington in 1997. He began creating fringe theatre while earning a living as a street musician on a homemade junk drum kit.[3] His avant-garde musical Ballyhoo, co-created with John Osebold, won "best play" at the 2000 Seattle Fringe Festival, and his multi-media one-man show A Day in Dignation won him the Seattle Times' Sammy Davis Jr. Award.[4][5] It was also performed at the Fringe Festivals of Edinburgh, Prague, and Amsterdam, and at PS122 in New York City.[4]

In 2002, McQuilken began working as a sound designer, composer, and onstage musician for several productions at the Intiman Theatre, including Bartlett Sher's production of Nickel and Dimed, which transferred to the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles and earned McQuilken the 2002 Backstage West Garland Award for composition.[6][4] McQuilken continued to write, score, and perform, creating Paper Airplane and Extropia with Collaborator, the Seattle art collective, the latter of which was named one of the best three shows of 2004 by Seattle Weekly.[7]

In 2008, McQuilken debuted the album His Forearms Were Tanks Now, which McQuilken wrote, recorded, and performed on a self-made, loop-based composition and performance station called "the RIG", under the band name The Few Moments. Artist Ira Marcks drew a 50-foot illustration to accompany the album,[3] McQuilken also played as the touring drummer for experimental folk musician Jason Webley.[8]

Education

In 2008, McQuilken was accepted to the Yale School of Drama for graduate studies in theatrical directing.[3] During his time there he directed and scored numerous productions, including Shakespeare's Othello and Gary Henderson's Skin Tight.[9][10][11]

Also during this time, he recorded The Few Moments' second album, The Celebritist, and scored filmmaker Sarah Lasley's short film Eve.[12] For his thesis project, McQuilken wrote, scored, and directed an original play with music, JIB.[10][13]

Post-university career

Upon graduating, McQuilken began collaborating with musician Amanda Palmer. He co-produced the recording and directed the music video of her cover of Nirvana's ' Polly' for SPIN Magazine.[14][15] In 2011, McQuilken joined Palmer's Grand Theft Orchestra as the studio and touring drummer for the album Theatre Is Evil, also acting as producer, production designer, and theatrical director for the 2012 World Tour.[16][17] He co-directed the music video "Do It With A Rockstar" with Palmer, Wayne Coyne, and George Salisbury, and in 2013 he directed the music video for "The Bed Song".[18][19] McQuilken left the Grand Theft Orchestra in April 2013.[20]

McQuilken continues to make music with his solo project, The Few Moments, and runs his own film company, Q Motion Pictures, for which he has filmed numerous music videos for bands such as Jaggery and Leisure Cruise.[13][21][22][23] As a founding member of the New York-based theatre company OldSoundRoom, he has directed numerous productions including an adaptation of Neil Gaiman's short stories, October in the Chair, and an original play with music, Machine Makes Man, co-created and performed with Adina Verson, which won Best International Performance at the 2013 Amsterdam Fringe Festival and subsequently ran at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, South Africa.[24][25][26]

In 2014, McQuilken directed Room No. 35, a concerto installation composed by Paola Prestini, performed by cellist Maya Beiser, with projections by artist Erika Harrsch.[27] For BAM's 2015 Next Wave Festival, he directed Epiphany: The Cycle of Life, a new music installation, and then directed the world premiere of Angel's Bone, a new opera by composer Du Yun and librettist Royce Vavrek, for the 2016 Prototype Festival.[28][29] He writes music and tours with David Van Witt for their band, Odysseus Finn, and composes for new musical theatre commissions at various theaters, including Ars Nova.[30][21]

References

  1. ↑ "'Only Murders in the Building' Cast's Dating History: Selena Gomez, Steve Martin and More Stars' Love Lives". Yahoo!. March 28, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Helga Davis and Michael McQuilken". Kimmel Cultural Campus. June 29, 2019. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 "The Few Moments » Converse". converse.com. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 "'A Day In Dig Night' Opens at Performance Space 122 8/13". BroadwayWorld.com. July 15, 2008. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  5. ↑ "And the Footlight Awards for Seattle theater go to …". The Seattle Times. December 25, 2005. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  6. ↑ "SeattleActor.com - RECENT REGIONAL TONY WINNER INTIMAN TO PRODUCE RICHARD III". seattleactor.com. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  7. ↑ "'A Day In Dig Night' Opens at Performance Space 122 8/13". BroadwayWorld.com. July 15, 2008. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Everett's Jason Webley gets the band back together". The Daily Herald. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Othello". yale.edu. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  10. 1 2 "'Jib' sets sail at Iseman Theater". nhregister.com. January 20, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  11. ↑ ""Skin Tight"". yale.edu. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Yale School of Drama Closes Jib 1/28". BroadwayWorld.com. January 28, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  13. 1 2 "Epiphany : The Cycle of Life" (PDF). Bam.org. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  14. ↑ "Watch: Amanda Palmer Brings Nirvana's 'Polly' To Life". Prefixmag. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Michael McQuilken". IMVDb. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Amanda Palmer & The Grand Theft Orchestra Announce "Theater Is Evil" - Under the Radar - Music Magazine". undertheradarmag.com. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  17. ↑ "VIdeo: Amanda Palmer's "Polly"". NBC New York. February 8, 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Watch Amanda Palmer's "Do It With a Rockstar" Video, Co-Directed by and Featuring Wayne Coyne - Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. November 9, 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  19. ↑ "Amanda Palmer 'The Bed Song': Singer Releases New Video For Latest Single From 'Theatre Is Evil' (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. February 14, 2013. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  20. ↑ Barry Lenny (September 30, 2013). "BWW Reviews: AMANDA PALMER Brought Her Unique Style to Her Many Adelaide Fans". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  21. 1 2 "Uncharted". ARS NOVA. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  22. ↑ Marc Levy (July 22, 2013). "In lush Jaggery video, Galbraith mansion becomes setting for mystery, foreboding". cambridgeday.com. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  23. ↑ Jacob Brown (December 18, 2015). "Julia Stiles Stars in Leisure Cruise Music Video - Vogue". Vogue. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  24. ↑ "On & Off York Street". yale.edu. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  25. ↑ "OldSoundRoom's OCTOBER IN THE CHAIR AND OTHER FRAGILE THINGS Begins 10/29". BroadwayWorld.com. September 22, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  26. ↑
  27. ↑ "Labyrinth Installation Concertos: House of Solitude and Room No. 35 | Krannert Center for the Performing Arts | U of I". Archived from the original on December 29, 2015. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  28. ↑ "BAM - Epiphany: The Cycle of Life". BAM.org. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  29. ↑ "Prototype". prototypefestival.org. Archived from the original on June 14, 2016. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  30. ↑ "Distraction is the Devil - Best of New York Fringe - Amsterdam Fringe Festival - Amsterdam Fringe Festival". Archived from the original on September 12, 2015. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
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