“Epic of Gilgamesh”
January 23 at 7 & 9 p.m.
January 24 at 7 p.m.
Biomedical Science Research Building Auditorium
Tickets $30, student rush tickets $10

The “Epic of Gilgamesh” has seen many re-tellings in its time. Three thousand years ago it was told through stone or clay tablets. Sometimes, it was transmitted orally. But tonight and tomorrow night the epic will come to life in the auditorium of the Biomedical Science Research Building.

This time, the “Epic of Gilgamesh” will transcend both language and geographical location. Projected images will show an interpretation of the story while pre-recorded sounds and live music concurrently sing the tale.

“Gilgamesh” was conceived by Syrian clarinetist and composer Kinan Azmeh and visual artist Kevork Mourad in 2004 at Julliard’s Beyond the Machine Festival. The resulting performance has developed into an hour-long piece that has been performed on the East and West coasts. Tonight will mark its Midwest debut.

The epic survives today on 12 clay tablets, and the performance will explore the six main tablets' stories, beginning with the introduction of Gilgamesh and Enkidu as characters, their friendship and the clash between them. Artists Azmeh and Mourad have also added their own contemporary perspectives to the interpretation of the ancient story, adding scenes where Gilgamesh looks forward in time to the city of Uruk and responds to the current global state of affairs.

Though the two artists were friends beforehand, they didn't begin collaborating until 2003 at Azmeh’s Julliard graduation recital. Mourad attended as a guest. After their meeting, Mourad and Azmeh decided to re-create one of the world’s most ancient literary epics.

“Shedding some light on this story is more important now than ever,” said Azmeh, referring to the current global and cultural climate.

Although “Gilgamesh” is socially conscious, the project isn’t politically based. At its core, “Gilgamesh” attempts to explore an ancient story through modern technologies. One artist paints, the other simultaneously plays music — together, their mediums create a entirely new form of storytelling.

The collaborative process is hardly simple. While Mourad paints on paper, his actions are caught on a camera that faces a computer. After the image of Mourad is processed, it is projected on a screen that lies in the center of the stage.

As the visual component of the performance plays out, Azmeh’s pre-recorded sounds are processed through his own computer while he plays and improvises on the clarinet. The multi-layered interactions between the artists and their products are created out of what Azmeh calls “an attempt to mix technology without featuring technology.”

“My music is processed by a microphone, and the paintings are caught through a camera,” he said, explaining how the performance's various components are created by the artists and projected through computers before they actually get to the audience.

Azmeh also experiments with multiple sounds that vary in their stylistic and cultural influence. But still, these sounds can't be classified as either uniquely Western or Arabic-influenced.

"These are terms I don’t really approve of ethnically (or) geographically,” Azmeh said.

Azmeh explained that one needs a geographical center point before labeling something as Western or Eastern. The music in “Gilgamesh” is electronic, contemporary and classical with Arabic influences. All of the musical elements exist all at once in combination with one another. What the audience hears, then, is something that may appropriately be called an undefinable sound.

The performance's visual art also defies expectation. Unlike most visual art, its creation will be done within the timeframe of a live performance. The audience watches as the art is being sketched. Illustrations will disappear as suddenly as they appear, representing the movement of the story.