Abbot Adam: Evensong (2015) is the first piece in the Abbot Adam Cycle, a series of works using the lens of medieval monasticism to examine ideas about purity, devotion, community, desire, and control. Loosely inspired by the Liturgy of the Hours, a system of Christian prayer that was used to structure life in certain medieval monastic communities, each piece in the series will have a radically different form. 

Evensong, named for an evening prayer service with music that often focuses on asking for protection during the night ahead, takes the form of a concert-play. Sisters Sibyl and Sistine are giving a memorial service for their recently departed mother superior when a dark force intrudes, threatening to overtake the abbey. They must band together to repel this attack, using karaoke-style singing, electric guitar, and the sounds that come from the depths of their pitiful and unworthy souls. The piece explores a wide variety of performance styles in search of new hybrids of music and theater. 

Creation and Performance: Jaime Maseda and Mark McCloughan                                                                               Design: Andrew Thompson

Abbot Adam: Evensong premiered on March 15, 2015 at FringeArts, Philadelphia, PA.                                                     NYC premiere: June 2016, ANTFest at Ars Nova.