Before You Wake is a contemplation of the end of the world. This theme, despite being so present of mind in recent years with the acceleration of climate change, is an eternal human fixation. The two-thousand-year-old text of Ovid’s Metamorphosis sounds startlingly of the moment as we contemplate sea level rise through lines like “and in the deluge drown the human race.”

By weaving together classical and contemporary expressions through movement, music and poetry we are navigating what it means to face our current, unprecedented magnitude of cultural, technological, and environmental transformation.

The human imagination has built skyscrapers and written symphonies. We have sailed around the world and flown to the moon. But, can we imagine our way out of this state of emergency? And ...should we?

Creative Team

Conceived by
Shannon Litzenberger and David Maggs

Choreography and Direction
Shannon Litzenberger

Created with and performed by
Dark by Five Ensemble

Christine Carter, clarinet
Yvette Coleman, voice
Paul Fadoul, percussion
Elizabeth Janzen, flute
Lynn Kuo, violin
David Maggs, piano
Kate Read, viola
Diederik van Dijk, cello

Music 
Björk, Arvo Pärt, and Igor Stravinsky

Arrangements
Robert Humber and Paul Fadoul

With text excerpts from Ovid’s Metamorphosis, Lorna Crozier’s God of Shadows and contributions by David Maggs

Executive Producer 
Colleen A. Smith

Lighting Design 
Karla Biggin

Set and Costume Design 
Shannon Litzenberger

Projection Design and Technical Support 
Matthew Buckingham-Bishop

Production Support  
Nick Hamlyn

Audio Engineer 
Louis McDonald

Stage Management
Chelsea Marks

Special thanks to Steve Muggford, Randy Maggs and Terri-Lynn Clarke