UNCSA faculty member is nominated for best sound design by L.A. Drama Critics Circle

Bruno Louchouarn, a faculty member at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, is nominated for best sound design by the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle for his work on Mojada: A Medea in Los Angeles, produced by The Theatre @ Boston Court and Lawrence Fleischman Theater at the Getty Villa.

The annual awards celebrating excellence in theatre seen in L.A. will be presented March 14.

An associate professor of interdisciplinary studies in the Division of Liberal Arts, Louchouarn is also a research designer for the Center for Design Innovation and teaches courses in UNCSA’s School of Design and Production and in the Film Music Composition program.

Adapted from Euripides's Medea by Luis Alfaro and directed by Jessica Kubzansky, Mojada is a breathtaking reimagining of Euripides' Medea transported to East Los Angeles. In an epic journey of border crossings, Medea, a seamstress with extraordinary skill, runs from a past of betrayals. With husband, Hason, and their son in tow, our storied heroine's struggle to adapt takes a disastrous turn when old and new worlds meet in the City of Angels.

The production received five additional nominations, for best production, lead performance, ensemble performance, direction and writing.

Los Angeles Times critic Charles McNulty praised the production’s designers and actors. "Kubznasky's production brings to the work a lovely classical poise through her ace design team (Efren Delgadillo Jr.'s sets, Ben Zamora's lighting, Raquel Barreto's costumes and Bruno Louchouarn's music and sound), poignant leads and pungent supporting cast," he wrote.

Louchouarn joined the UNCSA faculty in Fall 2014. A composer and cognitive musicologist, he has a Ph.D. in music composition from the University of California Los Angeles, and served as director of the Keck Language and Cultural Studio and associate professor of digital media at Occidental College. His experience includes a number of professional sound design projects.

He composed music for Metallurgy, choreographed by Dance Dean Susan Jaffe, which premiered in February 2015 at the Stevens Center and later was performed at the Alvin Ailey Theater in New York City.

His Sol Path, an immersive music and media work, was commissioned for the AxS 2014 festival in Pasadena, Calif. Sol Path was developed through a residency at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory during which Louchouarn met with Mars Mission team members including rover drivers, robotics engineers and members of the “planetary protection team” and collected interviews, images and data that are incorporated into the score and media installation. Sol Path features renowned violist Brett Deubner and projection design by award-winning UNCSA Film alumnus Adam Larsen.

by Lauren Whitaker

March 8, 2016