Scenic Design created by PMA Visiting Associate Professor Nick Embree will be featured in Día de los Muertos, a new ballet that was created, choreographed, and directed by Maria Konrad. The ballet will be performed at Nashville Ballet in Nashville, TN, from October 17 to October 20. The production will then tour in other cities, including at the Oklahoma City Ballet.
Embree spoke to us about the experience of working on this ballet and his design process:
“I really enjoyed designing the scenic elements for a ballet about Dia de los Muertos. The ballet tells the story of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera's spirits coming back to this world from the world of the dead. Along their journey, they meet up with other old friends in celebration, in several locations across Mexico. I love a challenge, and this ballet project gave me several! The scenery needed to be large enough to be visually stimulating, with several different scenic looks, but it also needed to fit neatly into one 25' truck. It needed to be quick and easy to put together, but it also needed to be strong and durable since this show is intended to go out on tour to different cities. It needed to move gracefully and easily so that dancers could maneuver it as part of the choreography of the ballet, but it also needed to be able to carry a performer. The night before the very first design meeting, I had the idea that I could create a large multi-tiered ofrenda (altar) by attaching together the road cases that the show would need for travel and storage, covering the cases with cloths with pre-attached props and decorations that came right out of those same cases.”
“Designing for theater projects is one of my main professional activities, of course, but the design process is shared across all sorts of other areas. In fact, once I started designing things for theater, I found myself analyzing the designs of pretty much everything around me. I appreciate good design wherever I find it, and I think about how I would fix design that isn't so good. I think, "This is a very graceful and clever bridge, with a very pretty placement over this ravine." Or I think, "That SUV is probably intended to look a bit menacing, with a front grill that looks like a snarl." I appreciate architecture that flows and functions well, and that evokes a sense of comfort or wonder or excitement in people in and around it. I enjoy looking at formal garden landscapes, but I also love gardens where the work hides itself, where an observer could believe that everything just happened beautifully and naturally.”
“I love to draw and paint, and this project let me do a lot of both. I sketched the design ideas out freehand, then developed them more fully in a 3D modeling program, then drafted everything precisely in CAD, and then digitally painted all of the new artwork for printing out on large-scale vinyl drops — so effectively I was the scenic painter as well as the designer. Work on the whole design took many (many!) hours, so I think I'm probably earning $5 per hour, but it was incredibly satisfying. I hope to work on future ballet projects with the same team at Nashville Ballet!”
Día de los Muertos: Experience the vibrancy of Día de los Muertos with Nashville Ballet's unique performance, inspired by Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. Choreographed by NB2 Director Maria Konrad, this visual feast celebrates the life and death, family bonds, and our shared humanity. With dynamic pacing, the show ignites imaginations across all ages through vivid costumes, soul-stirring music, and sheer joy. Witness this world premiere that bridges Mexican traditions with Nashville's cultural landscape, promising an unforgettable journey into the heart of this beloved holiday.
Telemundo Nashville covered the event in a TV spot that ran nationally.
