Stir Q&A: Chimerik 似不像's Caroline MacCaull and Sammy Chien sound off on Inner Sublimity
Copresented by PuSh Festival and Vancouver Art Gallery, the genre-bending work merges dance, new media, and video with immersive sound resonators
Caroline MacCaull and Sammy Chien. Photo by Chen You-Wei 陳又維
PuSh International Performing Arts Festival and Vancouver Art Gallery present Inner Sublimity February 7 to 9 at Vancouver Art Gallery
A NEW MULTIMEDIA production creates sound you can feel. Using immersive sound resonators, Chimerik 似不像’s Inner Sublimity is happening at the Vancouver Art Gallery in partnership with the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival. Taking place inside the Firelei Báez exhibition—and part of VAG’s mission to host more performance in the gallery space—the show marks the first performance as part of the gallery’s Centre for Global Asias program.
Inner Sublimity folds in aspects of Eastern and Western philosophy through dance, new media, video, sound composition, and technology. Three wooden benches have been turned into the sound resonators in the gallery space using high-powered tactile transducers. Discreetly mounted beneath the benches, the devices convert audio signals into vibrations, allowing participants to sit and physically feel the sound waves.
The technology offers Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals a meaningful way to engage with sound through physical sensation. For hearing audience members, the spatialized vibrations enrich the audio landscape and add depth to the overall effect. The integration of an experimental sound score and mesmerizing interactive new media projections further intensifies the atmosphere. The performance features Caroline MacCaull—one of the two creators along with Sammy Chien—entering trance-like states where she connects with spirits with whom she has cultivated a deep rapport.
Stir connected with the Chimerik 似不像 team to find out more.
You've said that the artistic approach in Inner Sublimity challenges colonial narratives. How so?
Inner Sublimity challenges colonial narratives in a number of ways. Firstly, the pacing of the piece, which is quite slow and meditative, challenges multiple things at once: expectation of what “dance” or “performance” is, while also confronting instant gratification, something we’ve been conditioned to seek out and need by capitalism and colonialism. With this piece, we encourage a shift in art spectatorship from simply witnessing, expanding beyond that, to experiencing the energetic and emotional undercurrents in a personal and somatic way. What happens when art shifts away from exclusively being for entertainment, to ritual or ceremony?
In developing this piece, we researched into the complex layers of colonial histories in Taiwan. Sammy thinks that the colonial history is very complex in Taiwan, as it is very evident of the actual positive impact from colonization, especially from the Japanese colonial era such as visionary urban design and city infrastructures (and many direct oral histories from Sammy’s grandfather sharing the fond memories of the Japanese occupation). Yet on a different perspective, the erasure of certain spiritual practices, especially certain Indigenous tribes in Taiwan, whom we connected with directly. How much have we gained? How much have we lost? What should we try to revive, to preserve? Who’s to make the call?
We use the context of co-creator Sammy’s homeland to amplify the need to preserve and discuss the complexity of colonization in the hopes to create a bigger dialogue.
Inner Sublimity will open with a land-based ritual led by Indigenous artist Starr Muranko, a close friend and collaborator, to help drop the audience into their body and into a receptive meditative state. In developing the ritual, we sought to empower Starr to take us on a journey that incorporates her creative and spiritual gifts.
How does this exploration of spirituality and mortality demystify taboos?
We exist in a culture that is rife with toxic positivity, spiritual bypassing, and avoidance of what makes us uncomfortable. Topics like death, Madness, and mediumship are still controversial, and these are three key themes in the work, which may confront audiences. We specifically address these in order to demystify preconceived notions about what it means to be spiritual, or Mad, or a medium, or to embrace death. The merger of technology with spiritual practice and art forms is intentional in illustrating a different experience for audiences, something they can actively engage in to find their own relationship to. Sometimes it’s about seeing yourself in something you never expected. We’re not here to change everyone’s belief system, but rather, we aim just offer a different perspective that some folks may not have previously been exposed to or considered.
What can you tell us about the intercultural connections that the piece examines?
As mentioned previously, this piece draws on Sammy’s Taiwanese cultural heritage as well as spiritual energetic practices, such as qi gong. At the same time, it also draws on Caroline’s European ancestry and experience as a medium, while situating the conversation on the Indigenous lands of Vancouver. Inner Sublimity seeks to hold space for multiple truths, placing experiences beside each other to come to an understanding of universality in human and spiritual experiences that may, from the outside, feel disparate. Ultimately, this piece is about connection and dialoguing across divides.
By combining dance, new media, video, sound composition, and technology, Inner Sublimity defies categorization. How do you describe the work that transcends traditional boundaries?
We would describe it with the following words: Ritual. Ceremony. Experience. By combining multiple mediums, we also challenge the idea that art has to be boxed in or defined by a specific genre or medium, which can act as a limitation not just for the performers but for the audience, too. This, too, is a way to challenge colonial narratives of labelling or narrowly confining art to a very particular set of rules, expectations, and ideas. Also, something we like to consider when drawing from multiple mediums is the way that these mediums work together not just as tools but as collaborators to the piece itself.
What was the motivation behind using immersive sound resonators to add vibrations into the experience?
The motivation behind using sound resonators was primarily to allow for another mode of access to DHH (Deaf/Hard of Hearing) audiences to experience the full scope of the piece, as accessibility is a major motivation for our work. Secondly, we appreciate the somatic and physically resonant quality of quite literally feeling the music as opposed to only just hearing it. This experience provides a new way to listen, to experience, and to allow performance to engage with your body—you become part of the piece.
A special shoutout to our incredible sound composer, Giorgio Magnanensi, for his collaboration and innovative thinking, which led us to incorporating the sound resonators!
Is there anything else about the work you'd like people to know?
During our work-in-progress tour in Europe, we had the privilege of collaborating with a remarkable emerging eco-fashion designer from Italy, Margherita Barbieri of UNDOStudio. Margherita creates clothing by sourcing used materials and upcycling them, showcasing sustainability through her craft. This collaboration was especially meaningful as it connected us to the local community in the small town of Poggibonsi, nestled in the beautiful region of Tuscany, Italy.
The music composer for Inner Sublimity, Giorgio Magnanensi, is also originally from Italy. A masterful and visionary musician, conductor, and curator, Giorgio has been an iconic figure in the experimental performance and music community for decades. Sammy has known Giorgio since his early days as an emerging artist and has always admired him as a guru, legend, and hero. Working with Giorgio on this project has been a dream come true. Beyond their musical connection, a memorable dinner conversation revealed that Giorgio’s grandmother was a medium in Italy, which deeply influenced him as a child. While he doesn’t often speak about it, his actions and approach to life reflect these spiritual influences. Collaborating with Giorgio has been profoundly inspiring and humbling on many levels.
This project also marks our first time using the app Holon.ist (developed by HOLONIC Systems), created by our new friend Ove Holmqvist from Finland. His company develops innovative and artist-friendly interactive apps. In one section of the work, this app sends live data to modulate the sound, adding a dynamic layer to the performance.
We would like to express our gratitude to Dance Victoria for awarding this project the Chrystal Dance Prize, which supported our international research in Taiwan and the UK. Special thanks to Gabrielle Martin for her unwavering support over the years—from the pitch phase to the technical residency at The Dance Centre and now to the premiere of this work as part of a world-renowned performing arts festival.
We want to share with our viewers just how much effort and dedication have gone into bringing this project to life, as well as the breakthroughs we’ve achieved together on so many levels.
We deeply appreciate the Vancouver Art Gallery for embracing interdisciplinary works and continuing to expand the boundaries of what can be presented in their spaces. This marks the first time they have partnered with PuSh International Performing Arts Festival to co-present a production of this scale within an exhibition setting. Bringing a theatrical performance into a gallery environment posed unique challenges and required significant shifts from their usual presenting infrastructure. We are incredibly grateful to the Vancouver Art Gallery for welcoming this opportunity, and to their amazing team—especially Lynn Chen, the gallery’s program coordinator—for her dedication and perseverance in making this performance possible in such a stunning space. It is an honour to perform alongside the work of Firelei Báez, whose richly layered paintings eloquently explore diverse histories and perspectives. This project represents a rare convergence of many meaningful elements and collaborations. There are countless individuals who contributed to making this possible—please visit chimerik.com for the full project details and acknowledgments.
Lastly, we dedicate this work to one of the most important spiritual teachers in our lives, who recently transitioned from the physical realm. This teacher inspired and empowered us to walk our spiritual paths and to create this project. When we sent him an invitation to the premiere, we learned that he had just passed away. We are still processing this loss and hope he can attend the performance in spirit. He played an integral role in shaping our spiritual values and teachings. His guidance emphasized opening our minds, embracing the unknown, navigating life without prejudice, and living with genuine, good intentions. Through this work, we hope to share a small part of the wisdom and inspiration we received from him with our audiences and the world. 
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