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AMP
The Electrifying Story of Mary Shelley
Written and Performed by Jody Christopherson
with additional text from the writings of
Mary Shelley, Percy Shelly, Lord Byron, William Godwin, Mary Wollstonecraft and Luigi Galvani
Assistant Directed/ Sound Design by Kodi Lynn Milburn
Lighting Design by K8 August
Movement Consultant: Natalie Deryn Johnson
Dialect Coach: Chloe Dirksen
with Voice Overs by Adam Belvo, J. Stephen Brantley, Jody Christopherson, Nico Grelli, Chloe Dirksen, KT Thomas, and Jonathan West
developed in the AFO So-Co residency at The Bushwick Starr and in collaborations with Emma Rosa Went, Finn Kilgore, Martha Goode, Stacey Boggs, Amy Marin, Kristine Schlachter, Kate August, and Isaac Byrne
AMP: an electrical current, A Modern Prometheus, the story of Mary Shelley's creation of Frankenstein.
Before Mary Shelley became one of the greatest writers in the canon, she was the unconventional daughter of anarchist philosophers William Godwin and Mary Wollstonecraft. Outcast and isolated, Mary created a genre that celebrated revolting in both senses of the word. Scientist Luigi Galvani's discovery of "animal electricity" acts as an electric undercurrent for suppressed creative narratives, accompanied by stylized movement, period costumes, props, and the philosophy that allowed women to become published as creators of their own stories . . . however horrifying they might be.
AMP was a nominee for the 2017 Innovative Theater Award for Outstanding Performance Art Production. It received its world premiere at HERE Arts Center in New York in 2017, produced by Goode Productions and its Canadian premiere presented by Workshop West Playwright’s Theatre in Canoe, part of the CHINOOK Festival in Edmonton, Alberta Feb 2018. AMP has been developed at: New York Society Library, (as the recipient of a New York Society Library Grant, underwritten by Alexander Sanger) and All For One Theater's So-Co Lab at The Bushwick Starr. AMP has been developed with Stacey Boggs (Innovative Theatre Award for Outstanding Lighting Design for the HERE Arts Center Production), Martha Goode, Amy Marin (Innovative Theatre Award for Outstanding Stage Management for the HERE Arts Center Production) and Kristine Schlachter.
PRESS for AMP
"a fierce burst of inspiration and madness."- Theasy.com
"fiercely intelligent and rebellious"- Minnesota Playlist
"a finely-tuned ballet of sight, sound and graphic horror."- Stage Buddy
“ELECTRIFYING . . . A MUST-SEE .” - Culture Catch
"Unforgettable, electrifying characters . . . sheer majesty. . . a triumph. Scary and enjoyable . . . brings back a sense of wonder about monsters." - Theater in the Now
"Primal and tantalizing. " -Exeunt
Developed at AFO's SoCo Lab / Bushwick Starr 2017
New York Society Library Grant 2017
HERE Arts Center, Presented by Goode Productions, Dec 2017
Chinook Festival, Presented by Workshop West Playwright's Theatre,
The Southern Theater, Minneapolis MN, Oct 2019
CREATIVE TEAM BIOS
JODY CHRISTOPHERSON (Writer/ Performer) has been called "a visionary in the theater world and legendary story-teller" (The Theater Times) “a talent to watch, not to mention a pleasure to hear” (Time Out NY) “the ANTITHESIS of the manic pixie dream girl” (Zouch Magazine) and a “Rock Monster” (Brooklyn Rail). Her work has been performed in 28 cities in 6 countries, including Canada, Detroit MI, New Orleans, Key West FL, Miami, Amsterdam, Germany, Lithuania, Australia, New York and has been compared to Margaret Atwood’s writing and Laurie Anderson's music. Her productions have been nominated for 7 Innovative Theater Awards. She is the Artistic Director of New York's so-fi festival. She is originally from Nebraska.
NATALIE DERYN JOHNSON ( Movement Director) is an improvisational movement artist, poet, photographer based in New York City. In 2018 she was chosen to partake in the Once Upon Water Residency in Toronto and was in residence at the Atlantic Center for the Arts for her solo work. Patient History, a story exploring chronic illness and elevation, premiered at Mister Rogers as her first movement memoire. She has worked with famed dance photographer Lois Greenfield and regularly performs with Christina Noel and the Creature. Her work with Albert A. Garcia premiered at BAM, Dixon Place and Bowery Poetry Club. She holds a Scholastic National Gold Key in Photography and received her BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography from UC Irvine. She dances in the rain and can be found collaborating with a variety of artists in a variety of contexts, from galleries to basements, from stage to film.
CHLOE DIRKSEN (Dialect Coach/ Voice of Mary Wollstonecraft) holds a BA in Literature and Linguistics from the University of Toronto and studied acting at Circle in the Square Theatre School in New York. Chloë works as an actor and private dialect coach, in person.
KODI LYNN MILBURN (Assistant Director/ Sound Designer) Kodi Lynn is a down to earth Nebraska Native based in Brooklyn. Kodi graduated in 2016 from the two year musical theater conservatory program at the New York Film Academy. During her time studying at NYFA, she sang at 54 below in Ewalt and Walkers' “The Making of Madeleine Moore", belted in NYFA’s production of “Chess”, and worked with Bobby Cronin and Crystal Skillman on a musical adaption of the claymation film “Mary and Max.” Before leaving school, she wrote a dance on film script called “Could you Dance in my Shoes” that was brought to its feet and directed by Deidre Goodwin. She celebrated a film she appeared in entitled "Seeking Alice" that won Best Movie Musical at the 2017 NOVA Film Festival. Kodi spent some time gigging around Brooklyn with her band "Requiem for a Butterfly" as well as a solo show in Reykjavik, Iceland, pending the release of her albums. Kodi is ecstatic to announce that her original albums, “Midnight Ramblings” & “Morning Revelations” are now available on Spotify and iTunes. Kodi has also been working on some original works around the city including her immersive multimedia musical "Chrysalis" produced by THE CREATORS COLLECTIVE. This past year she has worked at the Baryshnikov Arts Center with “I am the Utterance of my Name,” an exploration on Mary Magdalene and as the sound designer for Jody Christopherson’s AMP. Currently, Kodi is touring internationally with Sylvia Milo’s “The Other Mozart” while she prepares for her piece “The Resurrection of” previews starting Thanksgiving 2019.
ADAM BELVO ( Voice of Critic 1)
J. STEPHEN BRANTLEY ( Voice of William Godwin)
NICO GRELLI ( Voice of Percy Shelley)
KT THOMAS ( Voice of Critic 2)
JONATHAN WEST ( Voice of Lord Byron)
MARY SHELLEY
Mary Shelley was born on August 30, 1797, in London, England to philosophers Mary Wollstonecraft and Willam Godwin. She married poet Percy Bysshe Shelley in 1816. Two years later, she published her most famous novel, Frankenstein. She wrote several other books, including Valperga (1823), The Last Man (1826), the autobiographical Lodore (1835) and the posthumously published Mathilde. Shelley died of brain cancer on February 1, 1851, in London, England. Detailed Biography: https://www.biography.com/writer/mary-shelley