Watch spectacular and immersive orchestral mixed-reality performances in UNDISRUPTED, now on CBC Gem
Go on a musical journey with works by Measha Brueggergosman, Ana Sokoloviċ, Nicole Lizée and Shawnee Kish
Almost overnight, the COVID-19 crisis had a devastating impact on the performing arts sector, disrupting plans for artists around the globe and across Canada. UNDISRUPTED responds to these circumstances with a four-part series of mixed-reality orchestral performances created by four leading Canadian artists who fuse their narratives into spectacular performances in collaboration with conductor and music director of Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra Alexander Shelley. Viewers will experience a musical and visual journey through powerful and contemporary stories curated by visionaries Measha Brueggergosman, Ana Sokoloviċ, Nicole Lizée and Shawnee Kish.
Stream UNDISRUPTED now on CBC Gem, and get a glimpse of each episode in the trailers below.
Episode 1: Measha Brueggergosman — Forgotten Coast
In Forgotten Coast, Measha Brueggergosman rediscovers her Black Loyalist heritage in Nova Scotia and tells the neglected story of Africville while exploring themes of unquenchable hope. Brueggergosman brings together her background in opera and jazz with her love of hip hop and Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra with a performance by East Coast rapper Jay Vernon.
Watch Forgotten Coast on CBC Gem.
Episode 2: Ana Sokoloviċ — Iskra
Iskra, a 30-minute symphony written by Ana Sokoloviċ and performed by Alexander Shelley and Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra, brings the viewer on a metaphorical journey that places the COVID-19 pandemic alongside other major events in the history of humanity.
Episode 3: Nicole Lizée — A Guide to the Orchestra
Montreal composer and filmmaker Nicole Lizée creates a magical-realist odyssey in A Guide to the Orchestra. When a mystery character attends a rehearsal with Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra, strange things happen as we peer into another world behind the stage, where notions of identity and memory blur the line between fantasy and reality.
Watch A Guide to the Orchestra on CBC Gem.
Episode 4: Shawnee Kish — Music Is My Medicine
In Music Is My Medicine, Mohawk and two-spirit singer-songwriter Shawnee Kish collaborates with Alexander Shelley and Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra to immerse viewers in a nature-inspired setting that brings Indigenous youth artists to the stage to perform for the very first time as they go on a journey of self-discovery where struggle is met with strength using music as medicine.
Watch Music Is My Medicine on CBC Gem.
