“The score, like much of Adams’s work, is characteristically nimble and rhythmically driven the composer is a master of building tension in orchestral sound. In her hand, the score sounded alive, vibrant and yes, modern, while ensuring that the texts were fully heard.” “Kim led the SF Opera Orchestra in a reading with remarkable beauty, emphasizing the tonal effects and colorings of the many instruments, while paying close attention to Poulenc’s syncopated rhythms. “The orchestra, guided decisively by Eun Sun Kim in this production, adds color, particularly with accents and percussive punctuation.” It’s simply appealing music - often lyrical but occasionally strident when appropriate to help define the action - that sticks to your ears as it fades and lingers, and conductor Eun Sun Kim gets well-deserved credit for it.” “The music is characterized by a naturalness. With Kim’s mobilizing account of the music, murmurous string playing is set off by a sudden silence or a trumpet’s snarl…” “Under Music Director Eun Sun Kim’s baton, the music surges and flows through Poulenc’s vitalizing melodies. Conducted with fluid assurance by Music Director Eun Sun Kim, “Carmelites” conjures up every expressive strand in Poulenc’s suave score and weaves it into a rich dramatic tapestry.' At the Schukin Institute, which offers a unique system of training for actors, Shawna studied biomechanics, Stanislavski’s theories of physical action, fencing, rhythmics, directing, and dance.San Francisco Opera Dialogues of the Carmelites

She studied with Andrei Droznin, Sergei Zemtsov, and Igor Zolotovitski, covering the history of Russian theater training, including the techniques of Vsevolod Meyerhold, Evgeny Vakhtangov, Konstantin Stanislavski, and Michael Chekhov. During her five years in Russia, Shawna pursued work with theater institutions while completing her MFA in Directing & Movement from the Boris Schukin Theatre Institute of the Vakhtangov Theater in Moscow.

Her first project in Moscow, directing and designing a puppet version of Primo Levi’s If This is a Man, performed at the Moscow Art Theater and toured within Russia. After working in the Barnard and Columbia Theater department as well as at the world-famous Bread and Puppet Theater, she moved to Russia in order to pursue a Master’s degree. She completed her undergraduate degrees in Theater (BA) & Italian (BA) at the University of Texas at Austin. Shawna Lucey is an American theater and opera director based in New York City.

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