A modern multimedia musical by C.M. Soto
“BRAVE, RAW, AND RIVETING!”
Unpack the boxes, one by one, to reveal a tumultuous tale of child neglect, addiction, and redemption. Journal entries, shock poetry, and dark humor deliver a chilling narrative. Performance art imagery, puppetry, photo, and video assault the senses, illuminating a daughter’s journey from addict’s child, to addict, to mother, to survivor. Burlesque, mime, contact ball, scarf, and fan dance punctuate this true story by New York multi-disciplinary artist, C.M. Soto. An original score reimagined by New Orleans musician, UFO Death Cult completes the surround-sound experience of Ice Scream Theater.
THE STORY
Desiring her addicted mother’s attention, 13-year-old Daughter plunges headlong into the 80’s drug scene. She retreats into her imagination. It is here that her drug house takes on a life of its own. Her dolls become syringes, her blankets gauze. Her world is abstract and unsafe. Buckling under the pressure of being a surrogate mother to her siblings and overstimulated by the adult world of drug addiction, she abandons her mother’s house. She moves in with her grandparents. It is there that she begins her re-education. She excels in college, but her mother’s downward spiral leaves her restless. Just when it seems she’s escaped, she finds herself back in her hometown, pregnant, in an abusive relationship, and caring for her pre-teen sister. Taking a chance, she returns to college alone and pregnant. She follows her schooling to New Orleans to study the arts. Motherhood opens the wounds of a wronged child, straining her relationships. In New Orleans she is forced to face her demons. Soto finds therapy in artistry. She plays in bands, her poems get published, and her plays get productions. She begins to accept the pressure and expectation associated with being a driven woman and mother, without being a martyr. With her mother’s advancing Hepatitis C, Vinylux is forced to complete the circle from her own birth to her mother’s death. She must release childhood hurts from her heart to truly embrace her potential.
THE MUSIC
Ice Scream Theater is a rocking cacophony of music-box dirges, haunting instrumentals, and original songs by C.M. Soto, reimagined by electro-acoustic artist, UFO Death Cult for the production.
“Ice Scream Theater”
“Delightning”
“Demons”
“Bonecho”
“Luna”
CD of 5 songs, 1 poem, and 1 bonus track available for purchase.
THE MEDIA
Original images, mini-films, and puppet shows provide a textural ambiance to the play.
The short film, “Rooms” starring Gwynneth Stier was filmed, narrated, and edited by Soto.
THE TOYS (Original props created by Soto)
- Ice Scream Man Mask – A mask with its “eyes scribbled out” to represent secrecy and fear experienced by a child living with a drug-addicted parent
- Bird Cage Skirt – A floor-length metal bird-cage skirt used during the song, Luna to symbolize emotional incarceration (prop building assistant: Mike Goetz and Luke Crowther)
- Dollhouse Podium – Representative of the drug house of Daughter’s youth with a podium used for poems, Easy, Keeper of the Lops, and Storage
- Starved Puberty Wind-Up Belt – A belt with a working minute and hour hand and a wind-up key used to portray the danger of a
developing girl in a drug house - Timeline Boxes – Boxes used to compartmentalize the years that Daughter and her mother shared
- Record Wings – Wings made of vinyl records for the closing song, Bonecho to represent the musical education Daughter got from her mother
- Textbook Fans – Symbolic of the college years that provided Daughter her earliest wings. These fans hold over 100 individually cut feathers fixed to 78 records
THE CREW
C.M. SOTO (Vinylux) is a New York-based writer. She has been performing original electronic-based music since 2002 and is additionally a photographer, videographer, and graphic designer.
UFO DEATH CULT is the electro-acoustic project of New Orleans-based Benjamin Strange. Ben is the co-owner of Strange Guitarworks.
MIKE GOETZ is a New York-based video editor, videographer, photographer, and lead singer for the bands, Bronze Comet and Vuzz
PAST PERFORMANCES
- Marigny Opera House June 30 & July 1, 2017 – Full Production
- Botanical Gardens October 8, 2016 – Performance art/music in the birdcage skirt
- Mudlark Theater July 29,30,31, 2016 – Full Production
- Maple Leaf Poetry Series May 29, 2016 – Poetry and music only
- Tulane University Lavin-Bernick Center February 27, 2016 – Poetry and music
- Fringe Festival November 20, 22, 23, 24, 2013 – Full Production starring Nicole Lovince
BOOKING CONTACT: C.M. Soto
EMAIL: cmsotostory@gmail.com
WEBSITE: www.icescreamtheater.com
MUSIC: https://soundcloud.com/c-m-soto
FB: www.facebook.com/cmsoto72
HASHTAG: #icescreamtheater
C.M.SOTO 