Chris Prosser
Unfortunately we've had to cancel the show but we're planning to be back for NZ Fringe 2025 so watch this space.
Praise Thon! is the third show in a trilogy which explores the fusing of voice and violin by solo performer Chris Prosser.
Drink Violin (2017) the first show used the idea of Neanderthal singing, the voice expressing emotion and communication in a pre-linguistic way. In Drink Violin 2 (2022) the voice was taken over, colonised as it were, by the English language and the songs became silly ditties with violin functioning as accompaniment. Praise Thon! is in effect Drink Violin 3. It takes the spiritual and religious voice as starting point, integrating that with the fundamentals of violin playing. The result is tuneful and mystic with more than a hint of yodel.
Thon (or Th'on) is short for 'That One' and is a non-gendered pronoun currently in vogue. Here it is used as a replacement for Them or God. Charlie Kaufman's novel Antkind (2020) makes continual reference to thon and that's the origin of the show's title.
Drink Violin was performed at BATS Theatre (Wellington), Audio Foundation (Auckland), 50 Dundas Street (Dunedin) in Fringe Festivals 2017. https://www.theatreview.org.nz/production/drink-violin/#quite-mesmerizing
Drink Violin 2 was at the Pyramid Club (Wellington) in NZ Fringe Festival 2022. https://www.theatreview.org.nz/production/drink-violin-2/#entertainingly-colloquial-lyrics
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