On October 17th, we hosted a very special event here at The Resource Exchange. Encore was an eerie evening of opera, theatre, art, and spirits that was a part of the DesignPhiladelphia 2013 Experience Design Festival.

Waste of materials like lumber, paint, and fabric in the entertainment industry can be extreme, so for DesignPhiladelphia this year, we featured a display of works from all disciplines, with an emphasis on the performing arts.  Pieces on display were made by forward thinking, local artists, designers, and companies who incorporate salvaged materials from The Resource Exchange in their works in an effort to make responsible and environmentally conscious design decisions.

To set the mood of the October evening, The Philadelphia Opera Collective filled the crisp air with their haunting voices and unsettling ballads.  They performed well-known, spooky, sad, and disturbing operatic songs, as well as selections from their original FringeArts Opera, Opera Macabre: Edgar Allan Poe.  The puppets used in “The Black Cat” section of Opera Macabre, which were made entirely from materials from The Resource Exchange, were even part of the DesignPhilly display!    

Accampanied by the composer of Opera Macabre, Reese Revak, singers, Kristina Moore, Crystal Charles, Bob Davidson, and Michael A. Lienhard sang in our loading dock, surrounded by our inventory of props and set pieces salvaged from the waste of film and theatre productions

Visitors even had the chance to enjoy the evening whilst sipping spooky spirits!  A special thanks to The Philadelphia Opera Collective and our volunteers for making the evening such a  wonderful success!  We hope to host more events like this in the future, so keep a lookout! 

**Photos and video courtesy of our wonderful friend Harish Pathak