Written by Jean Cocteau in 1928 and set to music by French composer Francis Poulenc in 1958, La Voix Humaine gives an insight into the heart and mind of a woman having a final phone conversation with her lover who is leaving her for someone else. In her isolation, solitude, desperation, and despair, she must deal with letting her beloved go and find a way to surrender into the big void.  

“As a multidisciplinary artist, working as choreographer and opera director, I am deeply interested in bringing my passion for dance and opera together; working with the body and the voice originates in the fundamentals of human existence—the breath.  In this short film I wanted to meld my passion for dance and opera together. I was drawn to La Voix Humaine for its relevance today. Themes of isolation, letting go of a loved one, and farewell resonate with me and many of us in the times we live in”   - Nanine Linning

In 2022, La Voix Humaine won the Category Best Dance / Poetic film in the International Film Festival London, and was selected as one of the 10 best films overall.

A Boston Ballet Production

Concept, Choreography & Film Direction by Nanine Linning

Costume Design- Shane Maxwell & Erica Desautels

Director of Photography & Editor- Ernesto Galan

Dancers:

Ji Young Chae

Derek Dunn, Lasha Khozashvili, Ryan Kwasniewski, Soo-bin Lee, Molly Novak, Benji Pearson, Lawrence Rines, My'Kal Stromile, Paulina Waski, Nations Wilkes-Davis

As a visiting artist in the Polly Thayer Starr Artist Series at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, I spent many hours with their collection, and was asked to make work in response to my time there. In conjunction with the Common Threads Exhibit, I wanted to focus on textiles, while incorporating my love of costume and surface design.  

When visiting the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, it’s hard to ignore the presence of textiles;  fabric covered walls, clothing framed next to paintings, beautifully upholstered furniture and, of course, the tapestries.  As a contemporary response to the textiles and the collection at the Gardner Museum, I developed two costumes, each piece capturing the essence of a particular space in the museum.  This allows the wearer of the costume to personify the space, and allows the textiles to move around the museum as opposed to remaining static on the wall.    

Modeled by Jazzy Roulhac and Desean Taber

Photos by Matt Teuten

costumes and post production by Shane Maxwell

Special thanks to Brian Hone for making this possible.

A clubwear collection drawing inspiration from the defense mechanisms of poisonous insects and animals. 

Clothing design and construction by Shane Maxwell

Models- Gina Matuson, Bri DiMattio, Jeremy Day, Tom Fahey, Magda Janiki

As a painter/ dyer in the performing arts, I've honed my skills in color matching unlike fabrics, skin tone matching, and painting stretch fabrics. I am meticulous in my formulas, but also know that the only thing you can trust when dealing paint, dye and light, is your eye. Of the 11 years I worked in the Boston Ballet costume shop, I was the painter/ dyer for 7 of them. I've completed 5 seasons as costume paint/ dye assistant at Santa Fe Opera, and freelanced for many other dance and theater productions around the U.S.

I started my professional costume career as a crafts assistant. Being a crafts lead and technician allows me to utilize a wide spectrum of my skillset, while also experimenting and learning new tricks and techniques: project management, stitching, draping, soldering, thermoplastics, molding/ casting and painting, are the first that come to mind. These are a few examples of my personal and professional work that fall under the umbrella of crafts.

This exploration in surface design combines my love of mineral collecting, with the fabric painting and dyeing techniques I've practiced professionally and recreationally for more than a decade.  Each wall hanging features one of my favorite minerals, rendered with translucent layers of textile paint, built up over dyed fabric.  Much of my personal work is rooted in appreciation and collaboration with the natural world.  Attempting to capture the luster, transparency, and color of each specimen is just as much of an adventure for me as pulling crystals from the earth.

Painting for myself, friends, or family are what feel most fulfilling to me as an artist. I primarily work in acrylic paints, but also use watercolor, marker, and spray paint. I almost always start with physical media, but also scan my linework and dabble in digital art as well. Here are a few 2D projects I've done on my own time, live painting at musical performances, and a few commissions I particularly enjoyed.

What you see here are examples of my cut and paste collage, digital collage, and some in between. They most often take a surreal or satirical turn. I enjoy taking text and images out of context, and rearranging them to create new messages, or reveal hidden ones. This concept carries over to my approach to design and problem solving in general. I like to dissolve the barriers between unlike things, and see where things can overlap. That's where it gets interesting.