Animal Wisdom
Christian shapeshifts between rock star, folklorist and high priestess as she conjures a constellation of souls in an effort to confront her family’s mythologies. With raucous, ferocious music that fuses blues, gospel and folk, Heather Christian invites you to raise a glass to the unseen forces that shape our lives.
Adapted from the stage production that had a sold-out and acclaimed run at The Bushwick Starr, Animal Wisdom offers a transporting experience where a concert becomes a mass, and a mass becomes a séance, all in your living room.
I originally co-directed Animal Wisdom at The Bushwick Starr in 2017; I’m thrilled to have stage directed this one of a kind experience in collaboration with film director Amber Mcginnis, produced by Woolly Mammoth, American Conservatory Theater and the Bushwick Starr. The film streamed on Broadway on Demand from May 15th to June 13th 2021.
Learn more about the film and all the amazing humans who were part of making it here.
“Sinewed with vivid portraits of the quirky deceased, and ending with a gospel-flavored requiem mass, this remarkable show acknowledges mortality, but does so with ecstatic liveliness. ”
“With top-notch technical prowess, the film’s director Amber McGinnis, and Emilyn Kowaleski, who handled the stage direction, combine live and pre-recorded elements into a vivid and seamless presentation of Christian’s opus.”
