“Eos: The First Dawn” is a free, celestial-themed projection experience made exclusively for the “Palladiscope,” a one-of-a-kind, custom-made viewing system designed to play architectural cinema created specifically for the Palladium on Carter Green. It consists of 12 projectors, customized software and components that make visual experiences, such as “Eos: The First Dawn,” possible. Just as CinemaScope was an enhanced way to view movies, projecting them at a larger size, “Palladiscope” takes that idea even further by moving beyond the screen and onto the physical architectures of the Palladium.
Using the disciplines of cinematography and projection mapping, Eos champions both nature and the performing arts, by incorporating the beauty of the sky with the athleticism and grace of acrobats and dancers. Drawing inspiration from the Palladium’s Greek architecture, the experience incorporates ancient mythology and astrological concepts, while also exploring elements of the American Light and Space movement. The show’s visual effects utilize everything from classic film techniques to the latest in A.I. technology.
This piece of architectural cinema begins with the sounds of Debussy’s Claire De Lune, as mesmerizing clouds fill the palatial canvas. To achieve the desired movement, shape, and color of the clouds, Blockhouse Studios takes inspiration from the special effects pioneers of 20th century Hollywood, and built their very own cloud tank. By injecting paint into a delicately balanced mix of fresh and salt water, then filming it at a high frame rate, a mesmerizing, atmospheric cloudscape is created.
As the clouds settle to form a whimsical setting, the elegant moon goddess, Selene, appears in the night sky. Selene dances and hangs from the moon. For this performance, a custom moon-shaped lyra was created, and a professional aerial artist, Amy Oehlman, was cast for the role. Oehlman performed her routine to a sped-up version of the song, which was filmed at a high frame rate. Then, the footage was slowed back down to create the slow fluid movement that is seen in the final product. As Selene travels across the building, she sprinkles stardust which form constellations that come to life through the magic of traditional hand-drawn animation.
As the music of Debussy continues, the focus shifts to a more earthly perspective, as a serene scene filled with ferns and a rippling pond come into view. These assets were also shot in slow-motion and then digitally composited into the scene. Water droplets slowly cascade down the Palladium’s columns, which transform into The Four Winds, the children of Eos. They turn to stone as they sense their mothers presence, the warm light of the sunrise. For this, the team filmed four actors on green screen, then digitally drew overtop of one frame to make them look like stone statues. Then A.I. software was used to take the look of that still image and apply it to the rest of the frames in the video clip. The result makes it look like the statues are alive.
Morning Mood by Grieg is the soundscape to the next scene. The wind blows through, dissolving the statues into dust and carrying with it colorful leaves. Ornate Greek patterns trace the Palladium’s architecture and trigger the building to open up like an ancient passage into another realm. 3D animation was the key to unlocking this colossal effect that makes the building look like it is splitting in two.
From the opening, steps Eos, the goddess of dawn, played by Anna Ndungu, who dances in a color-changing dress, summoning the sunrise. For this enchanting dance, inspiration was taken from Loie Fuller, who was a pioneer of projected light art way back in the 1890’s. Like Eos, Fuller danced in a custom-made flowing gown, illuminated by multi-colored lighting. Her dance and dress were so captivating that she also inspired early film work like the Serpentine Dance. This combination of cinema, projection, and dance made her the perfect inspiration for this scene. While Eos dances, additional pieces of fabric fall covering the building. These fabrics were all lit with colored lights and filmed at a high frame rate to be slowed down in the final edit.
The final scene stars Helios, the god of the sun. As Helios gloriously rises, the Helios Overture by Nielsen plays. The ambience changes from the pinks and purples of the sunrise to the bright and cheerful sky-blue of day time. Acrobats dressed as mythical phoenix perform aerial maneuvers to entertain the sun god. For this, Clint Bobzien, a professional trampolinist, was hired to play the phoenix. Once again high frame rate cinematography was implemented to capture the nuance of his aerial performance. Helios, played by the exuberant Addison Rogers, is tickled by the performance of the phoenix, and as his excitement grows, so does his brightness, until he is so bright that his energy erupts into a burst of light, representative of the formation of the cosmos.
Next, the radiant, golden particles of the sun fuse together to form a golden fabric, blanketing the Palladium. The fabric drops, bringing the building back to reality. This majestic fabric dance was created differently that the one scene earlier in Eos’ scene. For this, 3D animation was used to make it appear as though the fabric is actually wrapped around the architecture.
The light being emitted by Helios was achieved by burning steel wool. The steel wool was attached to a motor, suspended above the camera. The camera, pointing toward the ceiling, captured the spinning fireball as it created a glorious ring of light that rained down sparks toward the lens.
Throughout the show numerous story concepts, and visual effects are explored, but a common thread woven through its core is the magnificent costumes designed and created in collaboration with the talented Dana Tzvetkov. Of note, is the spectacular color changing gown worn by Eos, which consists of an astonishing 25 yards of fabric.
By incorporating both traditional and cutting-edge cinema techniques, “Eos: The First Dawn” is able to provide the audience with a certain nostalgia, while delivering a completely new, modern experience.
