Celesthesia! A Noir Space Opera
By: Stephen Wilkins
Originally published July 17, 2017, by Plasma Magazine
Celesthesia! A Noir Space Opera is a queer sci-fi theatrical event that doubles as Loner’s album release party for “In the Tides of Time”. The plot centers around a murder committed at an intergalactic gala filled with celebrities, artists, movers, and shakers. Special Agent Dotte Comm is immediately put on the case, but there’s more than just a murder to be solved. There will be musical performances by Loner, Sequoyah Murray, Oshwa, and Monte Qarlo.
Loner’s record was completed back in May when Josh Loner and friend Monte Qarlo started spitballing ideas for exciting and fun ways to do an album release. “Things snowballed from there, becoming more elaborate by the day until we came up with a rough storyline, I drafted the script, and we started recruiting a team,” Josh Loner told Plasma.
Loner’s script draws from a wide array of sci-fi books, movies, and televisions. “The idea first struck me while watching Guardians of the Galaxy 2 at the drive-in theater with Lee Heikilla”, Josh said. That expansive universe where the possibilities are almost infinite and everything has cosmic implications inspired Loner to dream big. “I’ve always loved cosmic Marvel stuff like Silver Surfer or some of the deep cut X-Men comics, because of the scale.”
Another influence that looms heavy over the story is David Lynch’s Twin Peaks. “I was madly in love with how quirky the characters were, how elaborate the plotline was, and how the show slowly revealed its more mystical elements,” Loner told us. “Dotte Comm is like a queer coded Dale Cooper, and there is much more to the world of Celesthesia than meets the eye.”
With such lofty goals and high hopes for the production, Josh knew they'd need a devoted team to help pull off the stage performance. Celesthesia! A Noir Space Opera stars Dotte Comm, Monte Qarlo, Carter Sutherland, Drake Hamilton, Shane Dedman, Leo Heikkila, Maggy Roolz, Chris O Mcgrath, and Kiwan Benson. Set Design, Costuming and Makeup are being done by Maggy Roolz, Shane Dedman, and Eva Marie Nelson. The performance will also feature a video installation by Brandon English and sound design by Carter Sinquefield. Lex Miniel and Diamond Walker are both generating a full comic book for the show too! This team of creatives has been working hard since May to create an immersive experience for the audience. “Without their help, this project would not be rolling forward at all.”
While this is only a one night scheduled run of the show at The Mammal Gallery Josh Loner said there is a possibility for a sequel. The weather around Halloween is always nice, and the atmosphere might be just right. So come check this one night only performance of Celesthesia! A Noir Space Opera Friday, July 21st at Mammal Gallery. It’s $10 and all ages. Doors open at 9 pm. You can check out the release of Loner’s single Bioluminescence on their Bandcamp. https://loneratl.bandcamp.com/track/bioluminescent-2
