Side Show is our ongoing series focused on a collaboration between Contributing Editor Jameson Fink and Seattle's On The Boards, a space dedicated to contemporary dance, theater, and music. As part of the Ambassador Project, Jameson sat down with an artist performing in Northwest New Works and interviewed them. He brought the wine and the questions and it was all captured on video. This week's episode features a conversation with Molly Sides, a Seattle-based sound, movement, and film artist.
Molly Sides was very familiar to me but I couldn't quite put my finger on from where. Through the course of our conversation we figured out we were acquainted via a coffee shop that I frequent where she sometimes works. (Shout-out to Joe Bar.)
I asked her what I could expect when watching her upcoming performance, "I Once Was My Father". Here's what she had to say:
"Simple things. Some voice, some songs. More of an atmosphere is what I'm working more towards. Layers of visuals, of movement, of my voice. A soundscape."
One of the things I appreciate when I witness performances like Molly's is that it doesn't adhere to a tradtional narrative. Not bound by a beginning, a middle, and end, nor propelled by heavy-handed cues. Rather, it's all about, as Molly states, atmosphere. Mood.
So it seems appropriate that we were drinking rosé. One of the reasons why I enjoy it so much is that rosé has evocative qualities. The pink, festive color of rosé creates an instant atmosphere in the glass. It's then up to you to imbue it with meaning and memory based on who you share it with, time, and place.
Other topics covered: Parmesan cheese, Sicily, skiing in Idaho and Utah, and the Mormon Church.
