Dreya Weber talks about her ‘Hexen’ live shows

Dreya Weber. Photo Credit: Paul Antico.

Aerial choreographer Dreya Weber chatted about her upcoming “Hexen” live shows, which will be performed on October 26th and November 22nd at El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood.

Background on Dreya Weber

Weber is an actress, writer, producer, and director who has collaborated with celebrities such as Pink, Cher, Madonna, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, Rhianna, Carrie Underwood, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera, among others. 

“Man, I’ve worked with a lot of incredible artists,” Weber exclaimed. “I love working with pop stars and working with great pop songs.”

Weber designed and choreographed the aerials for Magic Mike Live in Las Vegas, London, Berlin, and Australia and for musical artist Pink’s aerial numbers since 2004, including her 2010 Grammy performance of “Glitter in the Air.”

As artistic director for Chicago’s Cabaret ZaZou, she directed and wrote the cirque spectacular. Dreya directed the stage and film versions of Frank Ferrante‘s Groucho airing nationwide on PBS.

‘Hexen’ show

Told through song, audience interaction and aerial dance, Weber’s new solo show “Hexen,” weaves the narratives of three women representing witch archetypes. 

It is part historical account, ancestral legacy and imaginative fancy, the show explores the demonization of women, the power of reclaiming ancestry and the celebration of the mystical.

The show contains original music by Weber with recordings of Mahler and Dvorak sung by Jenny Trier.

On the forthcoming “Hexen” shows, she remarked, “I am so excited. I’ve been working on this show for six years. It started out as a monologue that I was given an opportunity to perform in Los Angeles.”

“With ‘Hexen,’ I am able to tell the story that I want to tell,” she acknowledged. “That is what is super fun about this. It is so great to do this in my hometown in Los Angeles. My hope is to keep it moving and to keep it going.”

Idea for the concept of ‘Hexen’

Weber remarked, “When I mom studied my ancestry, the furthest ancestor she could track on the mother’s side was born in Trier, Germany, which is in the Moselle, but that was the site of the largest witch-hunt in European history, so I thought that was interesting because my mother was always a little unusual.”

“Then, I started thinking ‘what happens to a generation of children whose mothers are murdered publicly because they are accused of being witches.’ I started thinking of it as a generational trauma sort of thing but also in a personal way due to my mother’s unusualness,” Weber elaborated.

“I started researching and came up with this crone character and then, this performer character, and they represent different witch archetypes, where one is a crone, another is an Enchantress, and then, there is me digging around in the topic of what is a witch,” she said.

“That’s the whole theme of Hexen,” she noted. “It’s a theatrical piece in a weird hybrid form because I do audience interaction, and I interact a lot with them, and sometimes, I bring them up on stage. I do three aerial numbers that are different ways of using aerial acts as storytelling. It is all storytelling in very different styles.”

“This research on witch history and witch hunts was really neat,” she admitted. “I get to do this in a theatrical and fun storytelling way.”

Working with Pink

“I feel like I won the lottery with Pink, because she loves flying and I love flying,” Weber exclaimed. “I was the first person to teach her to fly 20 years ago. We’ve been able to make some really cool things together.”

“I’ve done four of Pink’s tours, and two of Cher’s tours. I’ve worked with Cher for six years; she is such a cool woman. I hope she goes on tour again; I really do. Cher is just so good. Cher is one of the best people to work for in the world. She is generous beyond your wildest dreams.”

Pink’s ‘Glitter in the Air’ Grammy performance

Speaking of Pink, Dreyer revealed that she created Pink’s entire Grammy performance for “Glitter in the Air,” which is still spoken and raved about to this day.

“I was in Pink’s kitchen a year before designing the aerial performance with Pink. I was literally in her kitchen drawing pictures with her, and she was all in.”

“That song is such a beautiful and simple sentiment,” she admitted. “It was a micro-story with a beginning, a middle and an end. The audience can really experience it as an arc and as a story. It was amazing to get to do that performance at the Grammys, and Pink just killed it!”

Stage of her life

On the title of the current chapter of her life, she responded, “Hexen.” “It’s all about Hexen.  I suppose one would call it the ‘Witch’ chapter,” she said. “It’s the best. It is totally Hexen.”

Dream collaboration choice: Billie Eilish

Weber listed Billie Eilish as her dream collaboration choice in the industry. “I would love to work with Billie Eilish someday, and to help her fly! I have this dream. I love her music so much,” Weber said.

“I think she has the training in her body to do that. I would do something very weird and cool with Billie and she really sparks my imagination,” Weber noted.

“We will see if the opportunity shows up. The artist has to want to fly for me to be brought in the project. It’s a complex thing and it involves so many departments,” she noted.

“Back in the day, I also wanted to work with Janet Jackson because I love her too,” she added.

Success

On her definition of success, Weber revealed, “Success means getting to work with some really passionate and talented people.”

“I’ve gotten to work with all of these extraordinarily talented people, and sometimes, I pinch myself. In fact, I often pinch myself. I am very grateful,” she acknowledged.

“I love working with people that are super serious that care about their work,” she concluded.

To learn more about her “Hexen” shows at the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood, visit its official website.