LEVITATOR TRIO (CLIFFORD+SHOKRAI+NORDESON)
"TWO SISTERS" BY MAX ABNER
LEVITATOR is a Bay Area–based trio featuring
Kjell Nordeson (drums), SAFA SHOKRAI (bass), and MARK PASCUCCI-CLIFFORD (vibraphone). Performing original compositions and improvisations, the group has been developing its sound together since 2021. Rooted in the jazz tradition while drawing from free improvisation and contemporary creative music, Levitator’s music balances structure, spontaneity, and collective interplay.
Two Sisters is the next installment in MAX ABNER'S series of operas that combine set librettos with improvised music. Set in the rural enclave known as Rough River, two sets of sisters (one set unremarkable, one set former child stars) live in adjacent riverhouses overlooking the water. Each set—guarded by deeply attentive mothers—suffers from various forms of emotional arrested development. When one of the former child stars drowns in a flood, one of the more pedestrian sisters becomes convinced that she is the drowned sister, still very much alive. Two Sisters plumbs the ensuing blurriness, as mourning, care, delusion, and placation mingle in a case of mistaken and troubled identification.
Two Sisters
a work-in-progress staged reading
Creative Team:
Libretto/Score by MAX ABNER
Directed by MICHAEL ROGERSON
Musical Direction by SADIE GREYDUCK
Cast:
Max: Max Abner
Joseph: Joseph Dee Bradshaw
Sister (S): Captainmcsweeney (Kaitlin McSweeney)
Her Sister (H): Truce Hansen
Mom and Mommy: Celeste Winant
Famous Sister (F): Victoria Glavin
Other Sister (O): Guilia Chiappetta
Ensemble:
Sadie Greyduck: upright bass
Travis Snyder: pedal steel
Joseph Dee Bradshaw: acoustic guitar
Max Abner: cassettes
Tim DeCillis: drums
Cost: $10-$25 sliding scale