Califone and Robyn Mineko Williams and Artists come together for a special in the round performance of their acclaimed collaboration, Echo Mine. Echo Mine was inspired by and created alongside Williams’ longtime mentor, Chicago dance icon and founding Hubbard Street dancer Claire Bataille. “The five-minute solo for Claire that we made together serves as the source material, the heartbeat, of Echo Mine,” says Williams. Bataille was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer one month after their first rehearsal in October 2017. Before her untimely death in 2018, Bataille encouraged the piece’s completion. The resulting work is a dreamlike memoir and meditation on themes of lineage, legacy, loss and hope. Highlighting musicians and dancers working together as one, Echo Mine blends Califone’s “urgent, lushly melodic” (Billboard) soundtrack with Williams’ “stirringly magnetic” (Chicago Reader) choreography. Joining Tim Rutili (bass, guitar, keyboards, vocals) are musicians Brian Deck (bass, electronics, percussion, synthesizer) and Ben Massarella (percussion), responding live within the framework of the Echo Mine score to the unique qualities and rhythms of each performance. Scenic and projection design by CandyStations featuring archival footage of Bataille, costume design by Hogan McLaughlin and lighting by Eric Southern complete the work. Echo Mine, the first new Califone album since Stitches (Dead Oceans Records, 2013), is available now from Jealous Butcher Records. Echo Mine premiered in partnership with the Joan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance on December 7, 2019, with major support provided by a 2018 Princess Grace Foundation–USA Special Projects grant, a 2018 DCASE Individual Artist grant, and Jack and Sandra Guthman. Original music for Echo Mine is commissioned by the Charles and Joan Gross Family Foundation. Facilities access for the development of Echo Mine was provided by the Joan W. and Irving B. Harris Theater for Music and Dance.
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Thalia Hall will require all staff, patrons, and performers to provide proof of full vaccination (two weeks after final dose). A negative test will NOT be accepted. Patrons will be asked to show their valid vaccination card (photocopy or digital photo is permissible) when they arrive at the door for entry. Additionally, masks will be worn by staff at all times and will be required of all attendees when not eating and drinking. We are applying these requirements to all future shows and will update the policy as needed or as new guidance requires. Please reach out to us at info@thaliahallchicago.com with any questions.