MEDIATHEK

A new folk opera commissioned by Kitka Women’s Vocal Ensemble, IRON SHOES reimagines a triptych of Eastern European fairy tales as radical stories for our times. The work combines the visions of Director and Choreographer Erika Chong Shuch, Composer and Music Director Janet Kutulas, and Playwright Michelle Carter, collaborating with powerhouse vocal ensemble Kitka, joined by eight of the Bay Area’s most compelling multidisciplinary performers and Shotgun Players’ visionary production design team. Kitka and Shotgun Players partnered to co-produce the sold-out, 39-performance world premiere run of IRON SHOES at Shotgun Players’ Ashby Stage in Berkeley, CA in the spring of 2018.
 
 Each folk tale that inspired IRON SHOES depicts an innocent heroine unjustly cursed to suffer a host of monstrous cruelties, including wandering around the earth in iron shoes. A modern female narrator tries to understand their stories and control their journeys, only to discover that it’s a real test to “walk a mile in someone else’s shoes,” especially when they’re made of iron.
 
 IRON SHOES bursts the bubble on a much larger fantasy—that infinite choice, opportunity, freedom, and fulfillment can be accessible to all. How many are truly able to “take control of their own story?” At a time when women’s stories are piercing through an ancient silence, the creators of IRON SHOES give voice to female endurance and self-determination through language, harmony, muscle, movement, humor, and dramatic design.