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October 28, 2005
Haunted orchestra spares the chills
BY DAVID NICHOLSON
It's "Mission: Improbable," as mime Dan Kamin tries to get the Virginia Symphony not to play scary music for Halloween.
You've heard of the man from U.N.C.L.E. And the man from G.L.A.D.
Meet the man from N.I.C.E.
He's nerdy Mr. Kirby from the National Institute of Children's Entertainment (N.I.C.E.), and he's trying to persuade an evil Virginia Symphony conductor not to play scary music and frighten the children.
There's comedy afoot in the "Haunted Orchestra," the symphony's family concert for Halloween onstage Sunday in Norfolk's Chrysler Hall. Mime artist Dan Kamin plays Mr. Kirby, ready to do battle with conductor Shizuo "Z" Kuwahara.
"It's really a musical comedy with the orchestra as a character in the show," says Kamin, a Pittsburgh-based mime artist who performs frequently with regional orchestras. "I try to persuade the conductor to play nice music, but every time the music starts something horrible happens to me."
At one point Kuwahara hypnotizes Mr. Kirby, and he dances like a puppet to the music of Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette." When Kuwahara hands Kamin the baton, it takes on a life of its own and pulls Kamin about the stage.
"The baton has magical powers, and it causes silly things to happen," says Kamin. "Kids get the message that when the baton moves, things can happen. Music has the power to change your mood."
Kamin also hopes that his antics will help kids to not be afraid of a symphony performance. In one section of the program, he creates a script for a horror movie and engages members of the audience to help him.
"The kids who come to these shows are very young," he says. "With kids of that age, and with the lights going down and the bombastic music, the underlying theme is to help them deal with fear."
You may see Mr. Kirby doing some slow-motion moves at area shopping malls this weekend. The symphony brought him to town on Tuesday for some impromptu street performances.
"My specialty is going into real-life situations and creating art happenings," he says.
Copyright (c) 2005, Daily Press
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The Virginia Symphony Orchestra with a complement of 79 professional musicians under the direction of Grammy-nominated Music Director JoAnn Falletta performs 140 concerts annually, reaching 200,000 concert goers every season in venues throughout the region. Our education and outreach programs reach 53,000 students and adult learners every year. The Virginia Symphony Orchestra is the cultural cornerstone of the performing arts in Hampton Roads.
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