https://calperformances.org/events/2023-24/illuminations-individual-community/taylor-mac-and-matt-rays-bark-of-millions/

A Parade Trance Extravaganza for the Living Library of the Deviant Theme

West Coast Premiere
Taylor Mac, writer, co-director
Matt Ray, composer, music director
Niegel Smith, co-director
Faye Driscoll, co-director, choreographer
Machine Dazzle, costume designer
John Torres, lighting designer
Brendan Aanes, sound designer
Oscar Escobedo, props designer
Zach Blumner, co-props designer

“If you’re not invited to the party, throw a better one.”
—Taylor Mac

Taylor Mac (a MacArthur Fellow, Kennedy Prize winner, and Pulitzer Prize finalist) and Obie award-winning composer Matt Ray visit with the West Coast premiere of Bark of Millions. Part rock opera, part reimagined pride parade, this epic production will stage 55 original songs—one to mark each year since the landmark Stonewall uprising. It’s both a celebration and a gift to the queer canon, expanding the archive for generations to come. Co-directed by visionaries Niegel Smith and Faye Driscoll and showcasing the extravagance of Machine Dazzle’s costume design, Bark of Millions will be brought to life at Zellerbach Hall by an international ensemble of 22 artists. Bark of Millions is a transformative experience that celebrates the power of individuality and human connection. This once-in-a-lifetime event promises to shatter conventions, push boundaries, and bring a bold new perspective to our stage. As in his legendary retelling of American history A 24-Decade History of Popular Music, Mac and his artistic community use music, dance, and drag spectacle to subvert and deconstruct conventional narratives and joyfully, transgressively celebrate queerness in all its forms.