“These are the Songs I Sing When I’m Sad” is an interactive play co-written by performer Jane Miller and producer Brian Quirt, by Toronto-based performance company NightSwimming. Presented by the RCA Theatre Company, the show is set to play at the LSPU hall from March 27-30.
‘Unconventional’ performances and creative processes
In their 30 plus years, NightSwimming has built a striking reputation for their ‘unconventional’ shows, unwavering support of artists’ endeavours, and performance-based pure research.
Pitched to Jane Miller based on the title alone, the show These are the Songs I Sing When I’m Sad is no exception to NightSwimming’s innovative mission. The show features Jane Miller playing piano, singing, and telling anecdotes about sad music – or songs she sings when she’s sad – there’s a difference!
She spearheads each performance, divulging stories of her own, perfected over the years to align with a score. In the latter part of the show, Miller invites audience members to share their own songs, resulting in a completely unique performance each time.
Jane Miller and Brian Quirt seem to be a perfect artistic match, complementing each other’s areas of expertise to make for well-rounded performances. An overall emphasis was placed on discussion and the creative process when initially creating the show.
“I wouldn’t say I’m a playwright, because I’m not,” Miller said, “I’m a raconteur, I love to tell stories and I love to talk to people and I love music – I’m a musician, so those are my ways in. Brian, interestingly, is not a singer, not a musician, but a massively curious person about human nature and about how art and humans interact.”
What to expect from ‘These are the Songs I Sing When I’m Sad‘
Miller discussed the nature of the show, she said “I think of it as a cross between a Ted Talk and a house concert. I’m going to tell you a bunch of the science so that you can listen for it, or a bunch of the actual research in the musicality of things … and then I’m going to share the anecdotes that we gathered from people about their sad songs so you can hear examples.”
“People start to think about their own stuff anyway, they’re naturally going to do that. Then there’s a point where we say ‘what are yours?’ and people start to share with each other. It’s really lovely.” The show gives people a reminder to slow down, and some time to reflect on the importance of engaging with art as an emotional outlet.
Associating music with people you’ve lost or difficult situations seems to be a common theme present in the audience’s contributions to These are the Songs I Sing When I’m Sad. Listening to music can be a healing or cathartic experience, even if we don’t realize it.
“Sometimes people have one about a person or about a relationship that broke up or about some event in their lives, something bigger maybe. These days there are a lot of anthemic pieces where you’re like, I saw myself crying the other day to something that I did not expect to be crying to,” Miller said. “Music gets past so many of our other barriers… music does so much that we don’t even know it’s doing.”
She also pointed out that the show is not solely focused on thematically sad songs. According to Miller, sometimes the songs we sing when we’re sad can be uplifting or upbeat to help remedy any negative feelings. She says that it’s always interesting to hear people’s favourites during the interactive portion of the performance.
Audience participation creating special memories
In the years that the show has been touring, there’s been a number of touching moments with audiences. Jane Miller told The Muse her all-time favourite.
During a small-scale performance in Blythe, Miller asked an older woman in her 70s if she would like to contribute a song to the performance. “She said, ‘this isn’t a sad song for me, but there’s a sadness, a bittersweetness attached to it.’ She said, ‘my husband, who’s been passed away over two decades now – if this song came on the radio he would dance with me in the kitchen,” Miller recounted this woman’s story.
The song was “May I Have This Dance for the Rest of My Life” by Anne Murray, and when Miller began to sing, a young man sitting across from the woman stood up and offered to dance with her. It’s these kinds of moments that are only able to happen in intimate, interactive performance spaces – making this particular show one-of-a-kind.
After each performance, the songs contributed by the audience are compiled into a playlist posted on the NightSwimming website for attendees to find the songs. Anyone interested can catch “These are the Songs I Sing When I’m Sad” at the LSPU hall this weekend.
