CAFE ANTARSIA ENSEMBLE

…high passion folk with streaks of Greek blues, Balkan/Americana gypsy & working-class fire from the New York City rebels of modern opera............The CAFE ANTARSIA ENSEMBLE was created by Greek-Texan Nikos Brisco famous for his Fever in the Funkhouse pioneering of the Deep Ellum music scene in Dallas--and Ruth Margraff whose radical operas have shaken the pillars of theaters all over the world. We are writing a trilogy of award-winning "world folk operas" for the stage and with master percussionist Rami El-Aasser (fresh from touring Egypt), and Ron Riley’s rock-steady strum & Delta slide, we play high passion world folk with roots in Americana rock n’roll. You’ll hear the streaks of Greek blues in the grain of our voices, and you’ll maybe feel the dust of Balkan Rroma/Gypsies - the only prophecy we trust. And somewhere between the Gypsy guitars, Greek bouzouki, tzouras, baglama, Cretan lauto, accordion, darbuka, riq and frame drums, the lyrics get set up with the epic precision of jewels against the rough-hewn, working-class labors of vintage cabaret. The minor characters you'll meet in every song, like us, will yield to and rebel against the longings for home and elsewhere that are life-long, unspeakable and in front of you................................................Special thanks to the New York Gypsy Festival, Joe’s Pub, Rockwood Music Hall, Galapagos, Brooklyn Academy of Music/BAM Café, ’06 Prelude Festival/Martin Segal (NYC), 2005 Karantena Performing Arts Festival (Dubrovnik, CROATIA); Artemovszk 38 Flagship/Danube River and Trafó-Kortars Muveszetek Haza (Budapest, HUNGARY); Dah Teatar/Rex Center (Belgrade, SERBIA); 2005 Pøíští Vlna-Next Wave Festival (Prague, CZECH REP); 2005 Festivalul International de Teatru de la Sibiu Festival (Transylvania, ROMANIA), all over Texas and GREAT BRITAIN in 2004; 2003 Novaja Drama Festival/Moscow Art Theatre/Golden Mask (Moscow, RUSSIA); 2003 Rebetiko Music Festival/Melina Mercouri Hall (Isle of Hydra); Municipal Library for Mayor of Paros (Isle of Paros, GREECE); Finikas Taverna (Isle of Crete, GREECE); Aymakent, Hotel Uyan (Istanbul, TURKEY); 2002 Bolshoi Zal (Moscow, RUSSIA); 2001 BELEF/Beogradski Letnji Festival/ Konak Knjeginje Ljubice in (Belgrade, YUGOSLAVIA); etc. Culturemart/Here, Hourglass/Century Ballroom, Public New Work Now & Joe’s Pub, Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Women in Music Series, New Dramatists, NYSCA/ITP, Chashama, Sanctuary, Hellenic Festival/NYPL, CB’s Gallery Stampedefest, Schoolhouse Roxx/PS122 (New York City), Iowa Playwrights Theater B (Iowa City), 2005 North American Cultural Laboratory Festival (Catskills), Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park (Ohio); TCG/ITI, TMUNY, Arts International, MTC Global Connections, Fulbright Foundation in New Opera (Athens, Thessaloniki, Paros & Crete GREECE), etc.