NEWS:
March 3, 2010:
Romeo and Juliet, directed by Matt Pfeiffer, opens at the Arden Theater Co. James is composer/sound designer. All you Philadelphians, come and see.
by Mark Cofta
Published: March 9, 2010
Then he skips dialogue to thrust us into brutal, high-speed combat between warring clans, the Capulets and the Montagues, underscored by James Sugg's throbbing music, and we're instantly involved in the timeless tragedy.tly involved in the timeless tragedy.
Feb 9, 2010:
James composes, sound designs and co-music directs...
ORESTES,Adapted by Anne Washburn and Directed by Aaron Posner opens at The Folger Theatre in Washington DC.
By Tom Avila
Published on February 10, 2010, 9:48pm
Much of that tone, the brilliant underpinning of Washburn's adaptation of the Euripides play, comes from the pulsating and utterly arresting Greek chorus. The ensemble – comprised of Lauren Culpepper, Rebecca Hart, Marissa Molnar, Margo Seibert, and Rachel Zampelli – haunts the theater with an intricate, a capella braid of chant, hand beat rhythms, and raw lyricism. James Sugg, who not only composed the music for Orestes but also served as its sound designer, has crafted a lovely, dark swirl that envelops the audience and gathers us in.
February 4, 2010 by Tim Treanor
They are aided by a fabulous Greek chorus (Lauren Culpepper, Rebecca Hart, Marissa Molnar, Margo Seibert, and Rachel Zampelli), singing James Sugg’s astonishing score. The question of how to use the Greek chorus in a modern staging is always a matter of some debate, but Sugg and Posner evince no uncertainty: the chorus is like the musical portion of the high mass, expressing emotions too profound to leave to plain unmusical language. While it seems unfair to single anyone out in a chorus this good, Hart sings as though she has the god DNA herself.
By Peter Marks
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 8, 2010
They're kept company by the vigilant Chorus, vibrantly embodied here by five young actresses, who provide the diverting incantations, songs and dances that serve as dramatic breaks in the action...delectably embroidered by composer James Sugg's choral hymns.
by Chris Klimek
The otherworldly musical interludes, meanwhile, have none of the presentational, self-congratulatory quality of the songs in a traditional musical. Composed by James Sugg, who also sampled fragments of Euripidies’s text— some of them in the original Greek — for the chorus to perform a cappella, the songs feel primal and scary. When they abruptly terminate, we’re right back into the dramatic fray before all that energy can be dissipated by applause — though the chorus’s limber performance surely warrants it.
Feb 1, 2010
James on the cover of American Theater magazine and Pig Iron featured article.
Dec 2009:
December issue of Philadelphia Magazine features James as their “PULSE” personality.
