On Tour
CORPUS DELICTI: JUST DESSERTS

Coming to an Anatomical Theater near you!
contact info@localinfinities.com for details. Our next performance is at:

Benedictine University, Lisle, IL [directions]
April 20 & 22, 2007
Tickets for the general public are $5 each. Tickets for Benedictine students are free. To make a reservation contact Karin Hadley at (630) 829-6274 or by e-mail at khadley@ben.edu.

Corpus Delicti refers to the body of a crime, not just to the corpse itself but to the related body of evidence. In this original production of visual theater, Local Infinities invites the audience to witness the dissection of a life-sized cadaver, cast in gelatin.

Corpus Delicti begins as an investigation of the art and science of anatomy, as practiced in Holland during the Age of Enlightenment, and immortalized in Rembrandt's 1632 painting "The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp."  

As the audience peers down from steeply raked seats in the operating theater, Dr. Nicolaes Tulp (Larry Underwood) guides them through the taboo territory of the body's interior. His anatomy lesson is interrupted by Suster Luyt (Meghan Strell) who challenges the ethics of this emerging field of research. Suster Luyt, the first woman to be condemned to death and public dissection in Amsterdam, reveals her identity as the flayed skin hanging on the wall of Dr. Tulp's anatomical theater. Dr. Tulp defends his consuming passion for knowledge, and in the ensuing debate, both the living and the dead reexamine their relationship to the human corpse.

The anatomy lesson is accompanied by Kennedy Greenrod, whose darkly humorous accordion tunes entertain while reminding us of our own mortality. Sage Reed, production designer, sets the stage with period costumes, elegant set pieces and illuminating projections. The text incorporates excerpts from Mortal Lessons, a collection of inspired essays by surgeon-turned-writer Richard Selzer.

The performance if followed by a Postmortem Panel Discussion which fosters a lively debate concerning current issues in medical research and ethics.

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Credits [ bios ]

Larry Underwood (Form Giver & Dr. Tulp) email
Meghan Strell (Artistic Director & Sister Luyt) email
Sage Reed (Production Designer) email
Kennedy Greenrod (Composer & Musician)
Mele Ortiz (Production Manager)
Avener Eisenberg (Performance Coach)
Paola Coletto-Kaplan (Performance Coach)
Dr. Norman Lieska (Expert Advisor & Anatomist)
Seth Bockley, Stephanie Nelson, Alex Harvey, Dan Kerr (Outside Eyes)

Support
Local Infinites Visual Theater, a not for profit organization, is supported in part by the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation and the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation.