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Monk in Pieces film image; woman holding up a small turtle to kiss

Monk in Pieces

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Meredith Monk may not be a household name but her fans include Philip Glass, David Byrne, and Bjork, to say nothing of the Dalai Lama. “She among all of us was — and still is — the uniquely gifted one,” Glass testifies here. As a singer, she has a rare three octave range. But it’s what she does with it that’s really interesting: vocalizing sounds you’ve never heard before. She defies classification. Monk’s also a performance artist, choreographer and composer. And, of course, she’s a woman, which was notable in the New York avant-garde scene of the 1960s and 70s. This playful and personable portrait is a perfect introduction to a singular artist.

Radiates a sacred respect for the difference between what matters to its subject and what doesn’t… even the documentary’s most straightforward moments are steeped in the purity of creation for its own sake.

David Ehrlich, IndieWire

A highly engaging, very human story about an uncompromising female artist battling to keep her unique vision alive.

Stephen Dalton, The Film Verdict

Directors

Billy Shebar & David C Roberts

Featuring

Meredith Monk, David Byrne, Philip Glass, Bjork, Merce Cunningham, Julia Wolfe, Ping Chong

Credits
Country of Origin

USA

Year

2025

Language

English

19+
95 min

Book Tickets

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Credits

Executive Producer

Elliott Joseph

Producer

Susan Margolin, Billy Shebar, David C. Roberts

Screenwriter

Billy Shebar, David C. Roberts

Cinematography

Jeff Hutchens, Ben Stechschulte

Editor

Sabine Krayenbühl

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